Updating this review just to let people know Animal Encounters is still incredible! This is our second time hiring them although we've been to several more parties where they were there. Always incredibly friendly and professional, the animals are so well taken care of and friendly. A huge hit with kids and adults. The staff is so easy to work with, setup is easy, they do everything, we just sent photos beforehand and discussed where the setup would be. They constantly have someone cleaning up any poop from the animals, it's just a Betty lovely experience and the most popular thing at our parties. read more

This was my second time over the years hiring Animal Encounters for my children's large birthday party. John did an outstanding job accommodating our group from start to finish. The team was attentive to the various age ranges of children, patient with all of our questions, and clearly prioritized the well-being of both the children and the animals. The cleanup was handled efficiently, as if it never happened. Overall, I highly recommend this company for this service. Their attention to detail, professionalism, and warm hospitality made the party fun and memorable! read more

This is one of the few times I wish it were possible to leave a higher-than-5-star rating for a business. I booked Animal Encounters as a surprise birthday gift for my wife, who absolutely loves goats. I was impressed with the prompt response I received to my online inquiry into booking, and spoke to John, who told me they could do their normal petting zoo experience with a Patagonian Mara, wallaby, rabbits, chickens, and a couple of goats or they could also do an all-goat petting zoo! Wow! Talk about being flexible and giving your customers exactly what they want! John clearly explained their requirements for where they would want to set up, but also provided numerous options depending on the weather (garage, a flat cement or concrete area, or our yard if it was large enough to accommodate their pop up gazebos and the animals' enclosure). I decided to go with the standard petting zoo, which worked out perfect because it gave the kids other animals to see and pet, while my wife contentedly played with the two goats, Andie and Ernie (I think?) Also worth noting, I think: When a snowstorm hit our area, we weren't able to have them out on the original day planned. But John promptly let me know and graciously provided options for rescheduling, thus, we ended up having them out today (less than a week later and with MUCH better weather to boot). Both John and Anna who came and set up were friendly, kind, and informative. They told us all about the animals, explained how to handle each animal--including where their wallaby Ruby liked scratches--and both set up and took everything down in short order, cleaning up afterwards. They left us with nothing but a great memory and an experience I don't think we'll soon forget. Thank you, Anna and John...and thank you Animal Encounters!! If you have a birthday or other event, I couldn't recommend them more!!! read more

Animal Encounters - Educational Services Near Me

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We booked the Australian animal encounter for my animal loving five year old's birthday party and all the kids had a blast. Kim was super engaging, entertaining, and educational. She had all the kids laughing! I really appreciated how well run and calm everything was. Kids that were scared to touch the animals still felt comfortable and enjoyed the program. Grown ups were also able to hop in and pet the wallaby :) read more

Animal Encounters - Kim and one of the pythons! - Educational Services Near Me

Anna did an amazing job today! Kids all enjoyed the experience!!! Especially with the two-week baby bunnies! Thank you!!!! Such a wonderful birthday party! read more

The petting zoo from Animal encounters was so cute! They had so many different animals and explained what each of them were. They made sure there weren't too many people in the petting zoo at once so that the animals weren't overwhelmed. They also provided hand sanitizer before and after you entered. We especially loved the wallaby and baby goat! read more

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We did a petting zoo for my daughter's 4th birthday. So amazing to work with Animal Encounters from beginning to end. Will hopefully get book them again in the future. read more

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Adorable!! "Cute and cuddly package" all the kids had a blast cuddling the cutest animals I've ever seen. We learned so much and the animals really did seem to enjoy the attention, they were so clam and sweet. The guinnea pig sounds! The handler kept us cracking up with her stories about the animals. Party was a breeze and truly unforgettable experience. They were able to do the whole thing in our seattle basement read more

Hands down the best money we've ever spent on a birthday in 21 years of parenting. Our 7 year old and her friends made lifelong memories today. The animals were adorable and our presenter was so skilled at engaging children. read more

What an amazing small business. This was a great idea. Went to a friends little girls birthday party and she rented animal encounters for one hour. They set up inside of her garage. For an hour I believe she said it cost her $450. That is on the steep side but I imagine that helps them cover overhead cost transportation food and vet bills, so I get it. The kids all really had a good time they were laughing and smiling the whole time the owners are very knowledgeable about the animals and very willing to answer questions. They are very gentle with the children as well as the animals. If my memory serves me correct they brought lion head rabbits, polish chickens, a wallaby, Guinea pigs, and a goat . This was perfect for the small kids. This was a great experience. Expressive but fun read more

Kim came out with the Australian animals for my daughter's 9th birthday party and it was AMAZING!!! Not only did she create a ton of opportunities for the girls in interact and touch the animals, but she was full of interesting facts and photos to keep them engaged. Her set up was seamless and she couldn't have been easier to work with. I'd give 10 stars if I could. The wallaby was definitely the star of the show, but the sugar glider was SO cute too. And, the snakes and lizards were super cool. This was a HIT!! read more

Animal Encounters made my daughter's 5th birthday awesome! Very patient with the kids and the animals are well taken care of. It was such a unique experience, all of the parents were asking how I found them. Set up was quick and easy. The only bad part was saying goodbye to Matilda, the sweetest wallaby ever. Definitely do it! read more

Animal Encounters - Educational Services Near Me

John and team are phenomenal! Clear helpful communication, accurate setup, a fantastic event with a whole bunch of happy children, all the while the Animal Encounters team ensured that the animals were being treated gently, paying attention to the needs of the animals and children. They setup the whole thing beautifully, and left the space perfectly clean when they were done. I'd hire John and the team at Animal Encounters again and again!! Than k you for making our child's birthday a 'wild' one! read more

Kim came for my kids's birthday party of 14 very rambunctious preteens. She rolled with it and they had a good time. It was a bit of sitting for this crew, but with the animals coming around from lap to lap and her building their anticipation for what was coming up, it worked. The birthday kid was pretty excited to get to hold them first and got to feed the wallaby a graham cracker, which was the cutest. We did the Australian animals and the wallaby was the star for sure. The sugar glider was too crazy to hold but they held the bearded dragons, pythons and wallaby, plus pet the blue tongued skink and got to see the frilled dragon pushing out it's frill. I would recommend this for kids that love learning about animals. read more

We booked a small petting zoo for my son's birthday. They were extremely responsive and professional from the beginning. On the day of the party, I was expecting just a few animals, but we had a wallaby, goats, sheep, chickens, a rabbit and a mara. The two attendants were absolutely wonderful and patient with my over excited toddler! I would contact them again in a heartbeat! read more

I went to an event yesterday and it was FANTASTIC! I hugged a wallaby! It gave me kisses! I snuggled a goat! The animals are clean, well cared for, happy, and secure. They treat the animals well, pay attention to their signals WRT how much they want to be handled, and clearly care a lot about them. These folks know their animals and audiences. I recommend them highly! read more

Animal Encounters - Wallaby - Educational Services Near Me

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Booked the "Zoo for You" for a three year old's birthday party, I was worried based on other reviews that they may not bring big ticket animals, but we got the baby wallaby so I was super happy! We also got 4 goats, 2 bunnies, chickens, roosters, a baby turkey, and a pig! Anna was extremely knowledgeable about the animals and the adults loved learning. She also encouraged kids to brush the animals, which was a fun activity for our age group. All the guests had a great time (young kids and older adults). I'm glad I added on an extra half hour because the kids definitely started in the zoo, went to snack, and were able to come back one more time. Team was very professional and showed up an hour and 10 minutes early. Usually people get lost finding my house, so I was impressed they took the time to judge the distance, traffic, and weather (yes it was raining) appropriately. For coordination, Kim was quick with response so that was helpful as we primarily coordinated through email. I would highly recommend them! read more

This was so cool!!! I called John and his crew out for our annual backyard summer party in Fremont. Last year we had a dunk tank, so this year we needed to top it. No one believed my that I had ordered a petting zoo, and everyone was blown away. I can see that most of these reviews are for childrens parties, and that almost turned me off, but holy cow am I glad I didn't. My party consisted of mostly late 20's and it was a total hit. EVERYONE loved the animals! They were so kind and gentle and loved the attention. Phones were out basically the whole time and my instagram feed was filled with the animals from this party. Needless to say I'm still talking about it with co-workers and friends that couldn't make it. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a fun and unique attraction for any party. We had 3 baby goats (adorable), 2 lambs, 1 Patagonian Mara, chickens, rabbits, and a Wallaby. YES, A WALLABY! (tiny kangaroo). Watching it hop from one side of the pen to the other was the highlight of the party. I can't recommend them enough. John showed up early and stayed right on time. The price was extremely reasonable as well. He was even very flexible when he realized there would be dogs at the party (this was my mistake, but the dogs were very well behaved). The staff was friendly and informative. I seriously can't believe this all went so smoothly. People are going to be talking about this for years and I get all the credit! woohoo!!! EDIT: This review says I live in San Francisco, but I live in Fremont Seattle. read more

What a great birthday party for our 5 year old and his friends! We booked Cute and Scaly and were thrilled with the whole package: presentation, the animals, the education, and overall joy on the kiddos faces. We had communicated the bday boy's love of reptiles and snakes, and on the day-of, Kim suggested to cut down a bit of the "cute" portion to add 2 more snakes, for 3 total! Amazing! Everything is very clearly stated on the website and Agreement Forms with regard to space, time, guest count, etc. Communication prior was great. We had a few questions leading up to the party, and responses/answers were quick, clear and accommodating. Highly recommend! read more

Animal Encounters - Educational Services Near Me

If we could give them more than 5 stars I would! Animal Encounters came to our elementary school and gave each class an amazing opportunity to learn about and interactwith Australian Animals. Each class from head start to 5th grade got to have their own time to learn at an age-appropriate level. I can't say enough great things about Kim and Anna, they were able to tailor each class to the grade level and added in different facts based on what the kids were interested in. They are so professional, great educators and clearly love and take great care of the animals. They are incredibly organized and have a great system for teaching. They made sure that each child had a positive interaction (over 500 kids!) and were so patient and spent a few extra minutes with kids who needed some extra time to be comfortable with the experience. The teachers and parent volunteers loved this experience as much as the kids! Truly 5* and already looking forward to working with them in the future! read more

So great! They came for our daughter's 12th birthday party and Animal Encounters were amazing. We got the Australian package and the kids were just completed engrossed and amazed. Kim did an incredible job and the party could not have gone better. Pretty reasonable rate, very communicative, and just a real pleasure to work with. Thanks Animal Encounters!! read more

Amazing!! Had Animal Encounters for my daughter's 5th birthday party. We opted for the reptiles and bugs (she's a bug girl). I was worried that some of the kiddos would be scared/nervous of the snakes, etc. but John did such an amazing job! He was so kind, gentle, and respectful of his animals and the kids. ALL the kids had a great time, and the kids I was worried about had a blast. The kids had a total blast, and came away with a greater respect for the creatures they got to "cuddle" with. My daughter keeps hugging me and telling me "thanks for having the bug man at my party!" We had several guests and siblings arrive that I was not expecting (no RSVPs), which meant about 16 3-6year olds in my basement. John handled them beautifully, and we are so appreciative he made my daughters party so special. Communication with Animal Encounters was AMAZING from the moment I contacted them to book the party...and they were supremely flexible when my daughter came down with the stomach flu the day before her party (we had to reschedule). These guys are awesome. Book them. For real. Way more fun and educational then a party at Pump it Up, and less expensive too!! :) Best of all? I think the adults enjoyed the party as much as the kids did!! One dad told me that it is by FAR the best kids party he has attended. :) read more

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We had them for a 6 YO's birthday party. All the animals are extremely well behaved, the owner and his staff are friendly and respectful, they arrived/set up early and cleaned up well after themselves before they were gone. Definitely a top childhood experience for our daughter. :-) read more

Excellent idea for an event at a completely reasonable price! We booked Animal Encounters for my daughter's 8th birthday party and we were super impressed with the whole experience. All of the kids had a blast holding and learning about the the animals. Two of the kids that came to the party had so much fun they ended up booking Animal Encounters for their own birthdays! Book this for your child's birthday party...you will not regret it! read more

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I can't say enough positive things about our Animal Encounters experience. Truly was the most fun birthday party we've had yet for my kids, and I love a good party! The keeper brought several animals, we all loved holding several fuzzy creatures. We learned a ton (adults and kids included). I will 1000% be using this team again, but booking earlier next time! Thank you so much for such a memorable party for my son! read more

I am so glad to have this company in our community! We have booked three encounters with them. One was a birthday party event and the other two were for an after school kid's nature/art program. They have an amazing assortment of animals and the kids love all of the fun facts they learn from the animal handlers. And, did you know they can create program content suited to your needs...they can do specialty programs on eggs, feathers, mammals and more. read more

What an amazing day for our sons birthdays! Animals were so fun and cute and relaxed. Kids had a blast. Crew was great, informative and cleaned up. Highly recommended. Thanks again! read more

Kim/Animal Encounters enabled a very special moment in this upside down coronavirus life we're living. We had originally booked for May when my son turned 5. However, with the Governor's orders we had to wait two months to have a smaller version of the party. Their flexibility and quick communications made an ambiguous moment much easier. My son and his buddies were overjoyed with the animals they got to meet and the new fun facts they learned. I learned a lot too. We recommend without hesitation! read more

Thank you for the cute scaly program for the birthday party. Kids enjoyed the experience and learned about really cool animals while having fun. The program is setup and run really well. We highly recommend Animal Encounters for a fantastic kids birthday party experience read more

I'm the organizer for our neighborhood's annual picnic. After years of 'entertainment' by a certain local clown, I was definitely ready for something else! Hiring Animal Encounters was the best decision EVER! We've just enjoyed hosting them for the second year, and I'm already getting requests from neighbors for them to be at next year's picnic. The animals are so calm, clean and lovely, and the employees are great about explaining to each kid/adult about how to interact with the animals. They use clean little fleece 'nests', which keeps the animals relaxed, and removes any worries about droppings, etc. Rambunctious adolescents? Wiggly preschoolers? Bored teenagers? Everyone falls under the spell of these beautifully cared-for animals! The adults all seem to end up near there, 'just in case the kids need help'. :) Animal Encounters' rates are amazingly reasonable. Don't hesitate.....hire them for your next event!!!!! read more

5 star experience, they just came to our garage on a rainy day for my daughter's 9th bday. I"m an ex corporate trainer and have very high expectations usually. They far surpassed anything we expected, with their organization, cleanliness, variety of animals, and wealth of fascinating info. Was a once in a lifetime experience, for kids and adults a like. read more

Animal Encounters - Nicey with her new best buddy, Apple - Educational Services Near Me

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On a rainy December afternoon, Animal Encounters set up a pen in our garage and brought out a range of exotic mammals and reptiles that the kids could get to know and hold as long as they wanted. John and company provided great direction and insight so the kids were safe and having a great time. I knew it would be interesting for them, but I was blown away by how excited they were. This turned out to be probably the best birthday party we've ever had. My son decided for his 11th, that instead of presents he wanted his buddies to make small donations to an animal shelter we support. So this was the perfect entertainment. A party that we'll never forget. read more

The reason for the second star is for prompt response time, otherwise this would be a one star rating. We were planning to use this company for an upcoming birthday event but chose not to because of the steep mileage cost. The company is based near Fall City. Mileage is 0.75 (federal rate is 0.535). When I sent a courteous and prompt response to the invoice saying that we were going to choose a different company due to the steep mileage, I received what I would consider a nasty response that included some heavy bravado. It is entirely probable that these guys may host a good presentation, but as a business owner myself I think of this as a major fail in customer care. In response to the comment below: The reason that I took the time to write a review at all was because of the tone you used to communicate with me. It was very insulting. I think my review has been fair. I have mentioned that you may indeed offer a great presentation. I simply stated mileage as the reason we initially chose to go a different route and mentioned your location. It seemed worthwhile to mention. I was surprised to be quoted a roundtrip of 64 miles (to Hickman Park in South Edmonds) from a Seattle/Eastside company, but it became clear when you mentioned your proximity to Fall City. I strongly believe in supporting businesses with good ethics and quality products. It was your general tone of correspondence and customer care that was targeted here and the only reason that I bothered to write this. read more

We did a petting zoo from Animal Encounters for my daughter's 4th and 6th birthdays. It was fantastic! We had so many kids I thought Kim and John would be overwhelmed for sure, but they handled everything so smoothly. They were friendly and really knowledgeable and obviously really cared about all their animals. I highly recommend them! read more

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Excellent experience and very professional! I needed farm animals to interact with children in a photo shoot and Animal Encounters definitely stepped up to the challenge. John was very friendly and responsive on the phone and in email as he learned our needs and recommended the animals we should use. The day of the shoot, he showed up on time, with wonderful animals that were very relaxed and easy to work with. Even though the animals hadn't been used for professional photo shoots before, it's clear they're all very comfortable around people and it was a breeze to photograph them with and without our models. The experience definitely made the day of our kid models and crew! John was very helpful on set and great with putting the kids at ease and helping our crew get what we needed. He was also full of cool info on each of his animals. It's clear he and his wife love these animals l and that their business is an extension that. I would highly recommend them for a shoot or for a kid's birthday (or grown-up birthday too!) It's been two days since the shoot and everyone on our team is still raving about the experience so definitely 5 stars! read more

Hi! We booked Animal Encounters for my Son's 2nd Birthday Party!!We opted for Bunnies.. Every kid in the party enjoyed..holding Cute little Bunnies:) The experience was AWESOME and UNFORGETTABLE!! Thanks to John!! read more

Wow, I'm not even sure where to start! This was amazing...we booked over a year ago for my son's birthday party, I called to just touch base a couple weeks before the party and they were right on top of it. The day of the party they arrived right on time, set up very fast and were extremely friendly with our group of mostly toddlers. We had bunnies, chickens, goats, a sheep, a wallaby and a mara!! I'm not sure who was more excited the kids or the adults! We will book them again for sure. read more

BEWARE: Even if you've made a reservation (and had family and friends make travel arrangements for the date you've reserved), Animal Encounters will bump you if a better offer comes along. A month after we reserved our date, they cancelled on us because a corporate account wanted my kids' birthday date/time. My kids are completely crushed. We had used them for 2 years prior to this and had previously recommended them to others. They did not care at all about ruining our kids' birthday. They only care about who will pay them the most money and not about honoring their word. We recommend using Bunnies for Birthdays instead. They are MUCH more affordable and honor their word -- they won't bump you for a higher paying customer. ***I originally left this review last year but somehow they managed to disable it from their listing so I'm re-adding it so people are aware of how they behave. read more

I saw Animal Encounters at the Space Needle recently with way too many animals and people inside their small setup. They had all sorts of animals that shouldn't be handled by children who aren't being watched carefully. A couple times I saw children nearly pick up the rabbits who were too inexperienced to be doing so but then became frightened when the rabbits tried to get away and dropped them. I saw the wallabe run to the emptiest corner and the staff SHOVE him back into the mass of strangers. There are no good petting zoos because letting people and children handle animals day in and out for profit is not for the animal's benefit, it's for the zoo owners. Sanctuaries rescue animals and sometimes allow the public see the animals, but they don't capture or breed animals for profit, forcing them to be handled and touched their whole life, or until they aren't cute enough or small enough any more. Shame. read more

Great party and delighted 16 kids of about 8 years old :) A few neighbors and parents dropped by as well for the chance to interact with a bunch of really nice animals - rabbits, wallaby, chicken, pigs, goats, sheep and many more plus a bunch of interesting reptiles that all the kids loved. Good communication, great setup and clearly well looked after animals. Loved it. A. read more