I mean - what's not to love. They have animals. You can feed the animals. The animals are all tame and want fed. Walking around is a little strenuous. Old people may have trouble with stumps and elevated walking. Bring your walking stick or cane. $12 for adults. Less for kids and seniors. This is a low key stop. You'll spend 2-3 hours here. But the crackers - don't waste your money on corn unless feeding the geese. Earlier you gone the hungrier the animals are. I fed everything you were allowed - all the animals were gracious and no biting or spitting. read more

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Like many others in PA, I grew up coming to this facility. Yes, it was a good experience through my child lens. I love animals, and the experiences I had at Pymatuning as a child certainly reinforced that love. However, having now grown into an adult, I can tell you this is a deplorable place. I have learned what well run "zoos" look like, as well as what actual conservation sites look like. This place is so far removed from an animal haven that I cannot fathom consciously supporting it with my hard earned money. To parents I say this: How are you comfortable bringing your children to a sightseeing tour of misery? Your willful ignorance is just as malicious as the people who intentionally let these animals suffer. Personally, I will never visit this facility again, unless it is to celebrate forced closure. I implore anyone reading this to reflect on what I've wrote here, and to research what you support so easily. read more

Poor donkey cannot walk. The park said she's under vet care. This does not look like she's under routine vet care to me! read more

Pymatuning Deer Park - August 15, 2024 - Parks Near Me - Jamestown, Pennsylvania

This is a great spot to take the kids. The park has a great layout with some nice shady areas for the hot sunny days. There is a wide variety of animals to see and feed. The kids will love you for it! read more

Pymatuning Deer Park - Feeding the bulls - Parks Near Me - Jamestown, Pennsylvania

SHUT this place down! They kept a bear named Bosco his whole life there, along with a companion living in a concrete pit until they were cited by USDA. Then PETA and the Animal Legal Defense Fund got involved and filed a lawsuit against them. Boscoe got arthritis and was finally moved to a bigger cat cage but ended up dying. Exploiting wild animals for a buck and not taking care of them. You won't get away with this in the next life, believe that. read more

This park needs to close down. They are not able to provide adequate care for some animals and refuse to send them to sanctuaries to get that care. Animals are literally dying there, and for what!? Shameful. read more

This park is close to my town. The first time I went, we were very surprised by a bear being kept in a tiny area with NO toys, no greenery and people throwing things at him. It was sad. I can see this being used as a petting zoo for a couple goats and chickens, but certainly NOT equipped for any emergencies. I saw no staff other than college age kids holding a horse for kids to ride or selling tickets. These animals deserve a better life. It may be a "family tradition"...but we know better now. read more

I suspect that many negative reviews are from people who have not visited this zoo. My husband and I thought that the enclosures for the animals were a typical size for a zoo, and none of the animals looked miserable. The bear that is mentioned in the negative reviews is elderly, and his shelter is not just concrete. I do have concerns about how the zoo sells only crackers for feeding the animals, so I want them to sell a wider variety of nutritious foods. Other zoos sell, for example, carrots and lettuce. We saw animals such as deer, a bear, a zebra, goats, horses, parakeets, camels, primates, etc. The cost for admission was $10 per adult--and a little less for seniors and children. The zoo is a decent size, but we walked through it somewhat quickly, so I recommend visiting only if you are in the area for something else. read more

I truly worry about the animals here. I feel like I have been a little disenchanted with animal "exhibits" lately. I just feel torn. Part of me would like to think this would be a haven for animals that for some reason can't be in the wild, but I don't think this is the case. All the cages are small and the animals seem miserable. I kept looking for signage on maybe why the animal is there and what they're doing at the park to better their lives, but I didn't see anything. That would have been the small glimmer of hope for me. I want to show my son how amazing animals are, but I'd sacrifice seeing them in person to have them have a better life. read more

This park encloses animals to abnormal confinings. They do provide them with proper space even close to resembling their natural habitats . Do not attend this park and pray it shuts down so these animals can go to safe sanctuaries where they can be more free to roam and live . read more

Other than the pricing this place is awesome great place for kids to see nature up close. Ignore the peta people nothing that involves nature and animals up close in a safe environment would make them happy. The animals are well cared for and have full Belly's because of all the healthy treats they get. The animals are very friendly and alot will let you pet them. read more

I have been coming to Deer Park with my dad since I was a child I am now 35 years old with my own 3 children and now I'm continuing the tradition and I take my kids every year! My kids really enjoy being able to feed the animals and being up close to the animals. They love to feed the birds it's one of their favorite things to do and they love riding the train as do I! I would really like to see them bring a few more activities in and give it the feel like it had in the 80's-90's. I remember that you were able to feed Little Pigs and sheep and the goats with little baby bottles and that was just the funnest thing ever I don't really know why they took that away maybe health hazard reasons. Also the little shop that's located inside the park by the playground used to be so much better back in the day they had a giant unicorn the kids could sit on and take pictures then they had a bear that you could stand by and take pictures with now they don't have none of that there was a lot of other little things in there to that made it fun it just seems like all these places just keep getting less and less I don't know if it's the please people who complain or what but I wish that it could be spiced up again and not be just so plain If that makes sense. Still will continue the tradition take my kids there every year but it's definitely not as fun as it used to be. I hope that they can stay open in places like PETA don't end up closing them. read more

Pymatuning Deer Park - Baby zebra - Parks Near Me - Jamestown, Pennsylvania

F*ck this place. Don't go! Help it get shut down! They confine bears to concrete pits. None of their animals get the veterinary care they need and deserve. The conditions are dirty. This place is just so wrong. Dint believe me? Look it up for yourself. I can't believe they are even allowed to have animals here. read more

I don't know what is up with all these wacko negative reviews, but do not believe them. Liberals have lost their minds! I've been to this place several times and have never seen the animals stressed out or poorly treated. It's a small "mini zoo", so you'd imagine keeping track and taking care of the individual animals is a lot easier. If the animals were treated so poorly this place would would be all over the news and shut down, but it hasn't been. Do not believe these mentally insane reviews, especially since I doubt any of those people visited the place. read more

My kids love going to zoos and animal parks to to see animals they are animal lovers...9 & 16...I take them because it's what they like, I am not an "animal lover" I like seeing the difficult animals ( I am allergic to all animals with fur)...it smelled so bad in places and we were out side in open areas it was like they had not cleaned up after animals in moths and the had a bear his cage was so small I felt bad for him....a lot of the cages were undersized for the animals. My kids did not enjoy it...$3 for a train ride which at one point I felt like the whole train was going to tip over....save your money and your go some where else. read more

I feel as if the animals are not well cared for. The lions and tiger have no space to run and the enclosures were really poorly taken care of. My experience was not great. read more

Sad to see so many fake reviews from peta wack jobs in California. Go bother something else ‍

Yuk! I don't think there's anything "fun" about going to see animals who are being mistreated. As others have noted, animals aren't being treated with any kindness. The bears are being kept in a concrete pit. How cruel is that? Not enough room to move, nothing soft to lie down on, no view of anything natural. What kind of life is that for a sentient being? I have to say that seeing these suffering animals broke my heart. read more

This place was so much fun. Everything was well cared for. I would come back in a moment. Strongly recommend. read more

Pymatuning Deer Park - Dromedary - Parks Near Me - Jamestown, Pennsylvania

Animals here are not properly taken care of including two adult bears, one male and one female, who have been relegated to a virtually barren concrete pit. These animals have been seen struggling to walk because of untreated medical issues The USDA's most recent inspection of the roadside zoo found that the bears are continuing to languish in the pits and that the female bear still has a significant winter coat that she has not been able to shed properly since last year. THIS IS THE EQUIVALENT OF WEARING A WINTER JACKET ALL SUMMER SITTING ON A CONCRETE SIDEWALK 5-month-old bear cub was crying out and sucking on his paw for hours while his brother sucked on his ear, resulting in hair loss and posing a risk for ear infection. The USDA acknowledged that this abnormal sucking behavior "can be attributed to stress and how the cubs cope with stress." The agency also cited the roadside zoo for failing to provide the bears with natural bedding to nest in, failing to adequately clean one of the pits that had a build-up of algae and grime, and failing to clean one den since spring. These are all FACTS uncovered by USDA with photo and video edidance which can be found here: https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=6237 read more

A gem for childhood, this park allows visitors to interact with a variety of animals. The ability to feed the park's animals creates some interesting experiences. read more

Pymatuning Deer Park - Logo - Parks Near Me - Jamestown, Pennsylvania

However, this deplorable tourist trap is still hell for many animals--including an adult bear named Bosco who is confined to a virtually barren concrete pit. In 2015, PETA first witnessed another bear struggling to walk and alerted the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to her condition. The USDA inspected Pymatuning following PETA's complaint and, among a litany of other federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA) violations, confirmed that the bear was "showing signs of debility" from arthritis and that the facility had allowed her to suffer in pain without ever notifying a veterinarian. The USDA also cited Pymatuning for confining the bears to a concrete pit, noting that it didn't allow them to move freely and that the concrete likely caused and was exacerbating the female bear's arthritis. Last September, the female bear was again observed struggling to walk--almost two and a half years after PETA first alerted the USDA to her suffering. Now, only Bosco remains, and he's also showing signs of arthritis while being forced to live primarily in a concrete pit. read more

Took the kids here. They absolutely loved it. Good value and alot of animals. I advise buying alot of the bags of animal food at the gate because the deer up front at the entrance will take most of it. read more

We did have lots of fun today my kids loved it BUT the small enclosures, animals with ribs showing, the 1/2 horse 1/2 zebra her ear was full of blood! I told staff and they seemed less then concerned! Some animals were Nasty and lethargic. The deer were so skinny! Hope they can change the standards of the park because we did have fun. read more

I absolutely cannot believe that this place is legally in business. I took my family there today and had to leave because we were so disgusted. If the smell doesn't get you, then the mistreatment of the animals definitely will. Honestly, it was very sad. The animals are in small cages. They are dirty, smelly, and covered with flies. I witnessed a leopard picking at raw chicken sludge that was dumped in front of him. I pray that this establishment won't be in business much longer. I wish I knew of a way to make this happen. I am horrified and wish I would have never seen it. Shame on the owners for making money off of torturing animals. read more

Visited this place about 6 yrs ago and it was disgusting. A hot summer day, no visible water for the animals that you could see, every pen, cage, enclosure was filthy an unkept. Came across five ducks huddled in the shade, no water anywhere. I saw an empty bucket and a spigot an filled it with water and took it to them to fill the empty "water container" that should have been full for them. They couldn't get to it fast enough tripping over each other to get to it. The deer were simply over populated for their enclosure and there was not a stitch of greenery for them anywhere...and I mean none! No branches from the trees even held a leaf close enough for them to eat. This was the same thru out the park. Their was a small so called stream thru the middle of an area and nothing but a few puddles left and they were filled with ducks, geese, waterfowl trying to get to some water. I took up these issues and more at the front desk and was told they had water behind the so called enclosures (sheds or whatever you want to call them). Water troughs were over turned and empty that we could see. Cement cages, no living room for them...disgusting. I have hoped they would shut this place down. This place is a joke and anyone taking their kids there are showing them how it looks to mistreat any animal. read more

A decent place to take the kids for the day to enjoy the outdoors while watching and feeding various animals. They have over 250 species of animals/birds in the park. You can purchase food and feed some of the animals (deer, monkeys, goats) They have a small train to take you on a small tour through the woods to observe the animals as they roam the property. Kids will also love the pony rides they offer as well. You can pack a picnic and make a day of it. It's fun! read more

Bears at a roadside zoo are reportedly living in a bare, concrete ditch. Conditions are apparently so bad that one bear can barely walk and still has not shed her winter coat from last year. Pymatuning Deer Park, which is located in Jamestown, Pennsylvania, has allegedly been investigated and cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The USDA confirmed that one bear's arthritis was reportedly never brought to the attention of the veterinarian and was likely caused by the concrete. This was not the only time the zoo was accused of failing to notify a veterinarian about an animal's health problem. A five-month-old cub was apparently found whimpering and sucking on his paw for extended periods of time. This is a telltale stress indicator. The cub's brother was also sucking on his ear, which put him at risk for an ear infection. In addition to all of these health problems, the USDA reportedly stated that the pit the bears lived in did not allow them to move freely. The pit is so bare that the bears have nothing else to do besides beg for scraps from the zoo's visitors. read more

It is fun for children to hand feed deer, goats, pigs, etc. the admission is under $10 for adults. Small bags of crackers are available for $1 each. This is the only food allowed to be fed to the animals. No outside food is permitted in the park. They have a snack shop and a gift shop. T-shirts and hoodies are reasonably priced. A lot of the items are dollar store junk. The train ride is $2/pp in addition to admission. They also have gem sluicing for $5/bag which is always fun. Fun for a quick trip. read more

It was a nice little petting zoo. My kid had fun. But the bigger animals like the bears and leopard had very small inclosures. the black bear looked very sad. Upside though the animals appeared to be well cared for. Don't know if I'll go back. read more

Absolutely beautiful park with some amazing animals. The enclosures were clean and all animals looked to be very well cared for. My family had an amazing day there and will visit again very soon. Highly recommend. read more

We had a really fun afternoon at the Deer Park. The kids (and adults) enjoyed all the animals. Very affordable and lots of interaction with the animals. Friendly staff as well. read more

This zoo is honestly aweful. We visited there and the animals are clearly distressed. They are very sad looking and their small cages leave them with little room to exercise. These animals are poorly taken care of. Something needs to be done! This is totally unexceptable read more

Deer park is more like animal prison. I don't usually write reviews but I had to say something. If you support this place (give them money) you need to know what it is you are blindly turning an eye to. I would honestly give this zero stars! This place was horrifying and totally ruined my day. You have to be an absolute heartless human being to not be appalled by the ridiculously small cages (two bear cubs in a wooden crate, separated from their mama, that is barely bigger than a dog kennel). The tiger was also separated from her cubs. Nothing is set up to mimic their natural living environment. Their site says 250 animals in less than an hour that should be a red flag! Every animal there looked unhealthy and depressed. I would love to shove one of the owners in those cells and see how long they last! read more

I grew up in nearby Sharpsville but moved to Baltimore 30 years ago. When our oldest daughter was one year old, we took her to Deer Park while visiting my mother one summer. She liked it so much, we've gone back every summer since then. That daughter turned 20 this past April, and when we visited my mother last month, guess where she still wanted to go? Yup, Deer Park! And if I may add, feeding the parakeets in the Budgie Barn was beyond awesome!!! read more

The bears need to be released they are in pain and have no stimulation, its torture.

I am very concerned for the animals there!! Many animals seemed not in good health and VERY dirty enclosures. I bought a ticket for my daughter to take a pony ride. When we got there, there where 2 Pony's to choose from. The first disturbing thing was the where tied so tight to the post that they could not even move there head, witch meant the left side of there head was against the post. One of the Pony's eyes had a lot of drainage and swollen shut. I did bring it to the attention of the handler. Witch in turn he went and got some one else to show them. The guy that came, looked at the eye but never removed the pony from the area. As we walked away they where putting another child on his back. I thought that was so ignorant of them. I myself own 2 mini horses, that animal needed to see a vet!! Someone needs to come in there and take those animals!!! read more

Very depressing place. The animals look very sickly and sad. They do not appear well-kept and their living quarters are not clean. I would not recommend this place. We were very disappointed and saddened by the condition of the animals. There are other animal parks in the area that have much better conditions for their animals. read more

not sure why there are so many negative reviews regarding this place .. I was a bit shocked to see big cats & bears here myself but the petting zoo area is a lot of fun & a great way to have up close interaction with a lot of different animals while feeding them .. lots of shady areas to walk thru & the grounds are very clean read more

I was there last year for the first time and while the kids had a blast feeding all the animals, I had a few concerns about the sizes of the enclosures (very small) and conditions (not very clean). As it was the first time I was there, I didn't judge too much. We went again today and I'm even more concerned. The animals seemed very, very thin and the enclosures very dirty. We rode the train and there was a small handful of deer around the train area, most of which you could see their ribs. The camels looked very emaciated from the back, visible hip bones, and they reminded me of horses you see being seized by humane officers. There were 3 bears in the little bear den area. One had a gaping wound on it's leg, it looked bloody. The bear was shivering and it's teeth were chattering. One of the other bears was attacking it, I seriously thought I heard bones crunching as the other bear was biting the hurt one. One of the little deer in the farm park area seemed to be ill, again shaking and teeth chattering, and it was curled right up against the pen area, but not in it. The kids said one of the two big cats in the cage right near the playground area also had a huge gash in it's leg. I won't judge the areas that looked very, very dirty due to feces mixed in mud, that must be very hard to maintain with all the mud, but the animals in areas with hard bottomed areas, not mud, seemed to have very dirty enclosures. read more