Well I can see the reason as why these negative reviews were posted Madison is simple she doesn't send you a contract, she takes a small deposit $100 and that's it, you don't hear from her till you reach out to her I did have to email and call her few times to lock in the date which I was worried it may not come through Her animals are adorable clean friendly she brings a lot more variety of animals compare to other mobile petting zoos and her prices are far below market rate We had some hiccups but it was resolved and The kids had a blast playing and feeding the animals we had a good party at the end of the day and that's all it mattered. read more

Farm Friendz - Petting Zoos Near Me

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UGH!! That's the last time I go against negative yelp reviews! I hired Maddison giving the benefit of the doubt. I like to support small biz and this seemed like a good opportunity. I normally hire Reptacular animals and have always been happy. BUT Madison said they would send two baby piglets and my 5 year old really wanted piglets so I went with it. NOT only did the promised piglets not even show up, roughly half the animals promised didn't show up. She said 5 guinea pigs would come- not one guinea pig. 3 bunnies instead of 5. Less chickens, the whole thing was just not good. They also came 20 minutes late so instead of setting up before the party, he set up after people were already here. The guy they sent didn't interact with the kids at all, nothing was said about the animals, there was no interaction. Just standing around. It was sad because it's not cheap!!! Maddison did discount me $150 but I spent nearly $600 that I wish I could take back and do something good else with Sorry, but this was not a good experience and when it's your kid's birthday you want to not have to worry. If you're looking for a great petting zoo experience for a party, this isn't it. read more

Madison & her farm Friendz are the best! We always get them for my daughters birthday parties. They make every celebration!! Definitely recommend them read more

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We just had a second wonderful birthday party with Farm Friendz. The animals are so sweet and good with kids. And the variety of animals is truly impressive. You may have to follow-up with Madison sometimes to get a response, but it is well worth it. We had them for both my son's 2 year old birthday a couple of years ago and yesterday for his 4th birthday - a huge hit with kids (and adults) of all ages both times! Highly recommend. read more

When you are booking your kids party you really need solid communication and these folks are so busy they just don't seem to be able to keep up. Maybe hire some more folks to handle the administration so the owners can focus on the animals. We were looking forward to working with them but I just can't leave the star attraction of the bday party up to chance. read more

As other reviews mentioned, communication is lacking and I am just trying to gather information/check availability. I emailed and got no response. I called and when someone finally answered, the person was unfriendly and requested information be emailed and texted. Again, information was emailed and texted and still have not heard back. The search for a petting zoo continues... read more

We were thrilled with our Farm Friendz petting zoo experience! All animals were clearly loved and cared for, well behaved, truly a delight. Maddison and Joseph were perfect handlers...showed us the boundaries then stepped back safely to observe without interfering. The adults enjoyed the animals as much as the kids...they brought a large assortment including the most beautiful cow, Lewis. We look forward to hiring them again. Oh, and if you complain they run late...you try coaxing a 500 lb cow in a truck. They put the animal's feelings and comfort first :) read more

Honestly I would give them no stars if I could. I'm not one to write a negative review however I've been trying to get in contact with someone for the last few days now and I have yet to receive a response, I understand if business is busy but usually I will at least get a response within 24-48 hours but still nothing. I've called, emailed them, Maddison texted me hours after I called I wanted to talk to her on the phone to ask a few questions but still no response. I thought this company looked reputable but after looking at reviews I realized I wasn't the only person who had an issue contacting the business on top of that it seems like they don't care about they're customers service which is a shame, I had high hopes to book them for my daughter's birthday but after this negative experience and not even being able to get a hold of anyone I'm completely devastated and disappointed with this business. Highly recommend to never work with this business, you'll be lucky if you even get a response from them... read more

Farm Friendz - I called Monday and this was the response I got, no call back, just a text... they seem so unprofessional - Petting Zoos Near Me

I particularly wanted to leave this review given some of the negative comments about this business. In the end, I had an incredibly positive experience with Farm Friendz. Yes, the owner is a little bit unorthodox in her business communications when it comes to booking and logistics. But I had a feeling that if I trusted and had faith, I would get a great value. And I was exactly right! The animals were fantastic, we got a really great value for the money, they arrived early, and my son and his friends had an amazing time at his birthday party. read more

They never respond to messages, emails, etc. The day when finally answered the phone Maddison was super rude; she told me "send me a message with the time and place to see if I can" and literally hung up the phone on me. I sent the message and she never answered it. I do not recommend this establishment to anyone, especially after seeing all the bad ratings it has, where it charges and never shows up. Despite knowing that most of them are events for a child full of illusion to enjoy their favorite animals. I would never contact thia business again! read more

I used Farm Friendz as a referral from my daughter's preschool. I texted Maddison super last minute - like, 4 days before our event, and she was able to accommodate us! I'm so glad that I booked her... they had baby pigs they brought out, let one of the kids walk the alpaca, and were just overall kind and engaging handlers. The petting zoo was such a hit at my daughter's birthday for both kids and adults. I didn't experience any of the communication issues other reviews mentioned - she was always very prompt in her text messages back. She was a little late but it worked out fine. Honestly when you see how much love and kindness they give the animals, it's worth it! read more

When I booked, I was excited to hear that they were able to take us with their busy schedule. When I followed up to confirm the day before, I did get nervous as I didn't get a reply until the next morning. Aside from the late reply, Maddison and assistants were great. They arrived on time and set up fairly quickly. They informed us on different animals to take caution with such as how to feed them with a flat palm as well as the areas on the animals to pet. The animals were very cute and the kids loved them. They brought more animals that were agreed upon which was a great surprise. I especially loved Luis. Madison was accommodating to the changes made to the length of their stay. I would definitely book them again for future parties. read more

Farm Friendz made our birthday celebration one that friends and family will never forget! Their prompt and professional staff delivered and outstanding experience for all, with a wonderful assortment of beautiful, well behaved animals. From the youngest of guests (3 year) to the oldest (70 plus), each received a personal and loving experience with each animal. We could not be happier with them and the service. I shopped this service extensively and in addition to the above, found their pricing and service to be far better than all 6 vendors I contacted. We can not wait till our next party for us all to get together again. Thank you Farm Friendz read more

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The owner was the only one of local mobile petting zoos to answer my inquiry and had reasonable rates, plus a good advertised selection of animals. On the day of the event, she texted to let me know she was running a little behind, which I appreciated. However, a little behind was a little over an hour - which for a kids party is tough with a limited time window. The owner did not follow any of the advertised COVID precautions, such as wearing a mask or offering/using hand sanitizer. She was not friendly at all. She only brought two of the three types of animals agreed upon, but also brought her pet dog which was not agreed upon. No refund or explanation was offered. The only instruction she provided for the children was to not pick up the bunnies and only 2 allowed in the pen at a time, she said nothing about interacting with the alpacas. Once set up with the animals, she was looking at her phone nearly the entire time. During this time, one of our guests was kicked in the face by an alpaca and another was bit by a bunny. I can only imagine that if she had been more present and aware, as well as provided more safety instruction for the guests, these incidents could have been avoided. She did not offer any condolences or concern for our guests, but merely continued on her phone. Aside from the injuries, the children enjoyed the animals. But due to the service and safety issues, I would never hire this company again. read more

Booked them for my daugjters 2nd bday guven that the compamy we rented for her first wasnt the best. Maddison took a bit to reply and i was worried it wldnt happen but she came through last minute. Her animals were soo cute! From the fluffy mini cow to the donkey nd rabbits they were all so friendly. Not to mention the gorgeous pony with blue eyes. My daughter was in love as were my guests! They were a total hit. Highly recommended and definately booking for my youngest 1st bday. read more

Farm Friendz - Petting Zoos Near Me

Warning do not use this company!! I was looking for a mobile petting zoo and I found FarmFriends online. This is the most unprofessional company. Maddison is non-responsive and has no idea how to run a business. After several emails, we finally spoke by phone and explained what I was looking for. Once we verbally agreed, I asked for something in writing, like a contract or term sheet because she Maddison seemed very unorganized and keep changing her prices and I was getting nervous. Typically, when you book with a reputable company, they will email you the services they provide, insurance coverage, dates and times they will arrive etc.... When I requested something in writing, Maddion stated"My laptop is broken", I asked if she could text me what we had agreed to and she replied "your making this more complicated than it has to be", and then "just Venmo me $100 to my account and that will be your confirmation" What??? who sends a complete stranger money without an agreement ? Needless to say because of the lack of communication and the very child like business practices, we contracted with another company. read more

We had such a wonderful day at Maddison's farm in the hills above Malibu. Our preschool went up for the morning and it was truly special. Maddison helped the children hold baby chicks, piglets, and baby goats. They got to ride one of her sweet horses, pet all the animals (including the alpacas... so soft!), feed leaves to the goats and corn to the pigs, and generally had the run of the place. I was so impressed with how hard she works and how happy the animals look. I read some of the negative reviews below and it sounds like there must have been a scheduling misunderstanding for a particular event, which is unfortunate. Based upon our experience yesterday (and the look on my daughter's face here... I mean, right?) I am planning on hiring Maddison for our next birthday party. read more

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Great place for kids party's or special events ,super friendly and very hands on ,animals are well maintained and taken care of, also the staff is very knowledgeable and super cool ,def recommend for all ages read more

Farm Friendz - Petting Zoos Near Me

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My Kiwanis Club hired Farm Friendz last year for a community event. The kids loved the petting zoo and, apparently, she was amazing with the animals and the kids, so we hired her again for this year's event. She didn't show up - which put me in a very bad position with a lot of families who showed up largely because we were [supposedly] having a petting zoo as part of the event. Maddison was very difficult to communicate with, did not obtain the necessary permit or post her insurance online as the City of Los Angeles (with whom we were partnering for this event) required and as I had requested she do three weeks before the date of our event. She did not return phone calls or emails in the week leading up to the event. Because of this, on some level, I wasn't surprised when she didn't materialize this morning. When I got home after the event, I found two emails from her - sent at 10:00 p.m., the night before an event I got up at 5:00 a.m. to manage. I'm very sorry, but I can't imagine putting myself in this position again. Hopefully, I can find another, more reliable vendor for next year's event. read more

I was initially worried to book with this company because of the bad reviews on yelp. I addressed Madison about my concerns and she assured me that the negative events were circumstantial. The prices are very reasonable! My boyfriend loves alpacas so I surprised him with three for a couple hours at his birthday party. The girls were professional and the set up was clean and easy. I would definitely recommend and I will most likely book them again in the future! Thank you! read more

We went to the park today to see the petting zoo Kiwanis had scheduled. We waited for 3 hours. They never came. My toddler wasn't happy.

Maddison was extremely friendly and kind. In between feeding the many animals she had, she would stop and answer any and all questions we had. Further, I was so impressed at how hard she worked to take care of these animals. Her love for them is clearly evident. Additionally, she was extremely hospitable and freely let us pet the many cute baby animals she had. She had baby goats, ducks, chicks, rabbits and piglets to name a few. We never felt unwelcomed. The place had a positive and pleasant vibe. I would definitely go back. I highly recommend this place to everyone. read more

Had The mobile farm for my birthday and it was the best decision in my life. They let me pick up the baby goat ( with assistance) and use him for my photobooth prop! These were the most well behaved animals ever. They were well groomed and well fed! Will definitely hire them every year.: or even twice a year just because I love animals so much. Very reasonable price too! read more

SO COOL!! The animals just left and i had to review because it was such a cool experience.All the animals promised came and they were so amazing. The price was amazing for this too.Thank you!! read more

I would not even give this company one star since they did not even bother to show up to my son's birthday party even though I was in contact with Maddison two weeks in advance AND had already paid my $100 deposit. This was so upsetting and my son was very disappointed, which is hard to see for any mother. On the day of the party, an employee- Chelsea- calls to tell me she would be running late due to another event running over time. Then, one hour later they don't call at all. When I spoke with the employee, she was rude. I told her I had called Maddison multiple times that afternoon to find out where the petting zoo was and she replied, "Her phone is broken." The employee then proceeded to tell me she would "map" where she was to my address and call me back. She never did. They never showed up. This happened about 7 hours ago and to this moment, she has not even replied to texts or calls. I am $100 down, with a disappointed son and party guests, and still can't reach these people. read more

Madison is an awesome gal very caring of her animals and willing to share information to others to help educate them on the well being of the animals!! read more

We used Farm Friendz for an event and they were nothing but a headache ....I could never get ahold of the owner Madison as her voicemail was always full....it would take several emails before she would respond....horrible communication on her part....not to mention on the day of our event she was late over 30 minutes and didn't feel it necessary to call...And even after she arrived late, instead of a sincere apology she was rude and acted as though she was being put out...would NOT recommend!!!! read more

Not sure if they are still in business. They don't answer phone calls and don't return any emails. Big disappointment. They used to be great

Horrible and unreliable company. I paid my $100 deposit and never received an invoice nor a confirmation for my mobile petting zoo. Maddison did not respond to any of my emails or messages once the deposit was made. I lost my deposit and never heard from her again. I had to find and repay another mobile petting zoo for my daughter's 5th Birthday on October 6th 2018, because I could not chance disappointing my daughter on her special day. Luckily I did hire a different company (Pegasus ponies was great) because Maddison and farm Friendz never showed up or contacted me nor refunded my money read more

The pets and staff are so nice. The animals are so friendly and well taken care of. They are all cozy and calm. Looks like they have been loved and cared for! read more

I hired the mobile petting zoo for my sister's baby shower. As some other reviews have stated, Maddison can be hard to reach by email. I assume they're just extremely busy and receive an overwhelming amount of emails daily. However, when I reached out via text, that was much more helpful in getting our plans into play. The animals were SUCH a hit at the party! Both kids and adults enjoyed the petting zoo and Victoria (from Farm Friendz) was so great in answering all of our questions about the animals. She was very professional and sweet. Overall, a great experience :) read more

I want to say thank you to you girls for squeezing my daughter's birthday in your probably most hectic weekend of the year, Easter. Maddison was friendly, nice and made arrangements for the petting zoo with the pony to make it. My whole family and friends were so excited to get to feed and pet the animals. My daughter and the younger kids LOVED the pony ride. She had a smile the whole time. Thank you again!! read more

If you care about animals, I would not use this company. I was recently at an awards event for California Wedding Day magazine. It was a nighttime event, there was flashing lights, blaring & blasting music and drunken humans. There were also TINY BABY piglets TREMBLING with fear and baby goats screaming at the top of their lungs. People were holding the trembling piglets ( obviously they could not care less that the animals were terrified which is another story altogether) taking selfies, and flashing their iPhones inches from the goats faces. What might you ask, do farm animals have to do with weddings ? I'm not sure , but I can see it's all about money , because the owners of Farm Friendz must not give a damn about these poor animals to allow them to come to this event and be exposed to these stimuli and be as terrified as they were . My friends and I are still traumatized by the whole event & we left immediately. Remember, it's not the fact that you ( or your kids) can pet and feed these animals, yeah you think it's " cool " god your party but what are the CONDITIONS these animals are kept in ? Does the ownership actually care about the animals in their care? Or is it all about the almighty dollar? Please give the animals some thought and compassion before making your choices . read more

Super fun for grown ups and kids!! Ps. Bigger kids can't ride on the pony. Everyone is welcome in the petting zoo though. The animals are from a farm in Calabasas they all seem to be well treated and happy. read more

Farm Friendz delivered on a very busy weekend and we could not have been any happier. The team arrived on time and went to work setting up. They were professional, courteous, and kept the lines moving. We were told they might not be able to bring a pony for my daughter's unicorn birthday but at least the rest of the animals could come. THE PONY SHOWED UP! I would definitely recommend them to anyone read more

Wow. I just came back from their farm in Calabasas, and it was such a great experience for my 3 year old daughter AND myself! This is a real animal farm, with more animals than you can count. What was most amazing was how friendly the animals were (the people were too). I've been in so many petting zoos where the animals are just wandering around not acknowledging our very existence, where these animals were eager for petting, friendly, and very hands on. My daughter also had a pony ride, and it was an amazing experience. This is not a pony ride like you get where the ponies are all tied to a wheel, grinding miserably around in an endless circle of doom, this was a real pony ride with a real saddle, in a corral, with the owner carefully guiding her around. One very loved, and cared for pony who actually enjoys children. TEN MILLION times better than anything you can find at Underwood Farms. That kind of ride is a joke. This was an actually learning experience for my daughter, who just turned 3, and let me tell you she LOVED it, and has been imagining and pretending about it ever since. They will also bring the pony and some of the animals for a petting zoo to parties. I will be doing this next year for sure. I actually discovered Farm Friendz at the same party that the reviewer Jazzmine K. is writing about. I was there. And I can tell you it was very different than she described. The pony riding was a HUGE hit at her party - the kids all loved it. The lady who got stepped on was in 5-inch heels, and just laughed it off at the time - not hurt at all. The kid who fell off was told not to get on because he was too big for the saddle. And I talked to the girl who brought the pony for over 30 minutes - found her really friendly and smart. Farm Friendz was not the problem, it was just not the right fit for that kind of a party. This was a real farmer and a real animal, not a circus ride like at Underwood. And it's a real shame that that is the first review this great business on yelp. I'll be recommending them to all my friends. read more

I CAN NOT BELIEVE how Unprofessional this company is. It's my baby nephews 3rd birthday and all he wanted was a petting zoo for his party. Guests arrived and left and still this company did not show up. They were already an HOUR late and after calling them for 45 minutes I finally get a hold of a lady and she tells me "oh we aren't coming", the heck does she mean she isn't coming??? Everyone at the party is expecting them and she tells me that she isn't going come. I asked her why not and inform her that I've been calling the number listed on their website and she says "oh. That's Maddison's phone and it isn't working". TOTALLY unprofessional. What does that have to do with anything?! I booked your service and you let my nephew down. That's not even where it ends. Then she tells me she will gps my address and call me right back and let me know her ETA to the house...45 minutes later...I'm still here waiting on her. She is not answering her phone and my nephew is so disappointed. This was a horrible experience and I hope my review helps anyone reading it...look elsewhere. read more

I called to book two mini pigs for my daughter's 2nd birthday party. Madison was very sweet and said that she would be at our party with the 2 mini pigs. Come Saturday she calls me and says that her employee cancelled on her and would not be coming out to our event. She said she would come after her other event, but asked if she could bring 1 mini pig, 2 rabbits, 2 goats, 2 ducks and a guinea pig. She said that she would not have a chance to take back all the animals to her farm and that she only had 1 mini pig and could not get the second one after all. She said she would bring the other animals and would charge me the same amount. A while later she calls and says her other employee cancelled as well and that no one wanted to come bring the pigs or any animals for that matter. She cancels 30 minutes prior to our event beginning. I told her she could come later as the children were waiting for the pigs and she said she would try to get some one to bring them. Her assistant calls me back and says they are coming, as her dad agreed to come, Although they were now going to be 3 hours late and would now only be coming to our event with one mini pig they were wanting me to pay, $275 rather than $300! When originally it was going to be $300 for 2 pigs. They were so unprofessional and clearly have terrible business ethic. They acted as if they were doing me a favor to come 3 hours late and with one less pig! Simply horrible business practices! I would never recommend this business, steer clear and go elsewhere for your event petting zoo needs. read more

I was so impressed with Farm Friendz! Their animals are sweet and obviously very well cared for. Maddison was great - ventured all the way to Long Beach and made it possible for us to have the petting zoo at our house, even with our small yard. Our daughter, her friends, and all of our guests just loved it. Highly recommend! read more

I booked Farm Friendz for a bridal shower in Ojai and they absolutely made the day. Ryan and Cleo set up on time and were fantastic about helping us with the animals and making it a really fun afternoon. The set up was quick, less than 15 minutes and the animals were all so incredibly friendly and sweet. It was a unique experience and the bride was thrilled. Thank you Maddison for making a special day even more so! read more