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Disclaimer: All pictures are copyrighted by Spirit Woods Studios/Dawn Marie Calo and may not be used without written consent of the photographer.
This particular exotic farm is open to the public April through October and offers a petting farm as well as a drive through area where the animals roam free in acres of open enclosures and come up to your car to be petted and FED! This farm was an exotic/longear lovers dream come true! The following pictures will reveal some of the most exciting sitings of long ears and exotics anywhere, bar none! As you gaze of these pictures, I'm sure you'll agree!
 (At left) Poitou foal
For starters, the farm features a small herd of the endangered French Poitou donkey, of which there are less than 300 remaining in the entire world. It as a real treat to experience these gentle giants and appreciate the efforts of parks like this who actually offer to give something back to the animals that so often carelessly exploited. Farms like this could actually become responsible for the ultimate survival of the breed ... not to mention offer a rare glimpse of these treasures to the general public to raise awareness for the breed!
Before the first World War, the Poitou was especially important in
mule production as the size of the Poitou is unmatched by any existing
donkey species (the breed is often considered the draft size of all
asses). Before the war, Poitou donkeys numbered 1,500 animals and mule production out of the Poitou was around 15,000 animals. After the war, and as mechanization has increased throughout the world, the demand for mules decreased and with that poor breeding practices and poor animal husbandry surrounded the Poitou. Besides their incredible size, the Poitou is even more easily recognizable by his extravagantly long coat and hairy ears. If left unbrushed, the coat will form "dreadlocks" that will nearly touch the ground! The North American Baudet de Poitou Society has formed in the United States to help try and save the breed.
Poitou Jack
Poitou Jack & Jennet
Poitou Jack & Jennet
 (At right) Albino-colored Zebra eating out of Dawn's hands!
As we continued on our caravan, not only did we spot a lovely Grants Zebra specimen, but an Albino-colored Grants as well! This Zebra is not a true albino as his eyes are powder blue and not pink, but the color is none the less rare and exciting to witness in the flesh! The zebras were very friendly, contrary to the reputation they often carry with folks who have never actually handled them. The albino zebra became a quick friend and I simply had him eating out of my hands (literally - grin!). As a matter of fact, it was all I could do to keep his head out of my Jeep, and my hair!
Closeup of albino-zebra's blue eye
(Webmaster note - sorry for the dark scan!)
Grants Zebras
 (At right) Damara Rump & Leg to show stripe pattern
If we had left right then and there, the trip would be an experience I would never forget, but fortunately the afternoon only got more exciting. The next equine sighting was a Damara, Grants and another albino colored Grants lined up at the hay bin. What a great picture that made! Grants zebras are the most common domesticated breed of zebra and are even referred to as the Common Zebra. They are also the most often boarded zebra species at zoos. So a Damara sighting was just another of the many great pictures I was treated at the Safari. Note the Damara has "shadow" stripes (lighter stripes between his darker stripes) which is most apparent near his rump area, and the striping on their legs is more more sparse than that of the Grants species.
There are essentially three types of zebras. On this page you will
see two of the subspecies of one type, the Plains zebra. The two
pictured subscpecies are the Damara (or Chapman) and the Grants (also
known as the Common or Boehm) zebras; the remaining three subspecies
of Plains zebra are the Burchells (once thought extinct, but a small
herd has been located in Africa!) , Selous and the extinct Quagga.
The remaining two zebra types, aside from the Plains, include the
Mountain (with two subspecies which include the Cape Mountain and the
Hartmanne Mountain) and the Desert variety (which includes only one
subspecies called the Grevy). The "albino" pattern you see here is
indeed rare and usually limited to the Plains zebras, mainly the
Grants.
(Front to Back) Damara, Grants and albino-colored Grants
left - Damara, middle - Grants, right - albino-colored Grants
Grants Head Shot
Grants Zebra
 (At left) Poitou Zedonk - rump & leg to show pattern
Finally, as I meandered through the walk-through zoo, I was excited to see a Poitou foal (above) to add to my photo safari collection. But the most impressive moment of the trip was yet to come as I notice a zedonk foal in the same pen as the Poitou foal. Having seen no other donkeys on the premises, my hunch was confirmed by an employee of the park that this was indeed a POITOU Zedonk! Being that the Poitou is an endangered species, these donkeys would never be intentially bred to another breed, let alone to create a sterile offspring. The employees said it was indeed an accidental breeding. Keep in mind knowing what you now know about the Poitou that this may indeed be the first and only Poitou Zedonk in existence!
Poitou Zedonk - aerial view to show dorsal stripe |
Poitou Zedonk foal |
Poitou Zedonk Head Shot
The park's season runs from May to October (hours not yet set). 1997 admission was $13.95 for adults.
Talk about a lucky find!
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