Tierpark Weeze

The plan marks the start just beyond the B9 underpass and four information stations on the deer-meadow side, continuing towards the transformer tower. Follow the signs and pause wherever a panel catches your children’s interest.

Choose only the sections that suit your group’s mobility and turn back whenever you need to.

If energy is limited, choose the llamas and alpacas, goats, ponies and donkeys on the café side, adding the insectarium during opening hours. On a longer visit, go through the underpass for the barn, deer and bat-trail stations. Use the plan to choose your own order.

Pick two of the farm animals and ask everyone to notice one difference: ears, coat, feet or the way they move. Check the labels afterwards. This works just as well for a child who wants to draw as for one taking photographs.

Try finding an animal in each terrarium before reading its label. The collection includes giant land snails, rose chafers and several kinds of stick insect. Give each display a slow look, without tapping on the glass.

Look for the Poitou donkeys’ long, shaggy coats. Watch how one animal changes its ear position while resting or listening; there is plenty to notice without calling to it.

The miniature Shetland ponies make a good comparison with the donkeys. Ask children to describe the mane, ears and overall shape before they look at the enclosure label.

Watch the dwarf goats before entering the petting area. Notice which animals approach and which prefer to stay back, and let that guide how close you get.

Choose one llama and watch its posture for a little while. Then compare its head and body shape with an alpaca, checking the signs to keep the two straight.

Look for differences between individual alpacas as well as between species. Which has the fullest fleece, and which is easiest to recognise by its colour?

Find the pig enclosures on the parking side of the plan. Spend a moment watching an animal move or investigate its surroundings, then check the sign for its breed.

Scan the perches slowly before moving on. A still owl can be easy to miss; enjoy the view quietly and let a resting bird stay undisturbed.

At the deer meadow, start with a wide view and then follow one animal. Is it walking, feeding or resting? The viewing platform offers another angle if it suits your group.

Use the enclosure signs to distinguish fallow deer from the other deer. Watch a small part of the group for a while rather than trying to photograph every animal at once.

Keep an eye out for the sika-deer sign during your round. Compare the animals you can see with the red and fallow deer, leaving space for them to rest away from the fence.

In the barn, choose a quiet spot and watch the guinea pigs at their own level. Small changes in movement are easier to notice when you stay still.

Watch a rabbit’s ears and nose while it pauses. For any closer contact, wait for staff permission and the supervised session; otherwise enjoy watching from the visitor area.

The listed animal targets live in the park’s care, including the deer. They are captive animals, not records of wild sightings. Give every animal space, and expect that some may be resting out of view.

The Poitou donkey is a domestic breed from France. Its long coat makes it memorable, but it also opens a useful conversation about preserving variety among farm animals. Ask children which familiar animal surprised them most today.

The park plan puts Café Eselsohr, the toilets and the insectarium together on the farm-animal side. It is a convenient place to make a toilet stop before continuing through the underpass. The café’s morning-only schedule makes it worth planning your refreshment break early.