Paws Farm Nature Center

Fridays are grandma and grandpa day with our grandson. My wife discovered this place via a Google search.
You enter into what’s called the education center. There are turtles and snakes in aquariums, birds and other small animals on display. While we were there one of the employees brought s box turtle to a carpeted area to talk to the children about the turtle and allowed the children to pet the turtle.
In another area of the building it is set up as a hands on play area for the kids. The stuff is pretty basic but the kids enjoyed it nonetheless.
When you leave the building you follow the path to a play area consisting of a pirate ship with s slide. There is also a small house with working Windows and a Dutch door. There was also a wooden train with an engine and cars attached. The ship and house seemed to draw most of the attention. All of the equipment is in need of some paint or stain to brighten everything up. The area itself is in need of sprucing up. S further takes you to z paddock with some ponies. There is another building for the kids to play in which is part market and part play area with a slide.
Just outside of this building is another paddock area where you can feed some of the animals such as goats, potbellied pigs and sheep. There are other animals in cages around this area with chickens and rabbits. Again. This area could use some sprucing up.
This place is great for pre-​kindergarten kids both for the animals and the other children there to run and play with. It might be okay for older kids up to ⁸⁄₉ if they live animals.
However, the entire grounds are overgrown and everything needs sprucing up with some paint. There was one trail that was overgrown with empty cages that added to the dreariness b

My son loved this place and didn’t want to leave. They have so much to explore you need at least a couple hours to let your child play. I would say to start from the back and work your way to the front otherwise you might get stuck in the play area for awhile.

Excellent place for children to come so they can play/​learn! There’s playgrounds, indoor play areas, animal exhibits, daily shows to learn about animals and a mini zoo/​farm. Great staff also

Big disappointment.
Shoddy everything.
Creepy farmhouse with snakes and a buffalo head on the wall.
Pathways were unswept.
More playground equipment than animals.

Very friendly staff great for smaller kids because the indoor place places allow them to run freely Id say kids 7 or 8 and younger will like it here, we drove an hour was worth the trip to spend some time out of the house about as far as Id drive though its not a very big place

This place was probably nice back in the day, but it needs a major facelift! Playground equipment old, indoor play areas dirty, staff rather unfriendly/​not helpful, trails overgrown, don’t waste your time here when Johnson’s Farm is in nearby Medford– it is a thousand times better.

Stop reading and take your kids here NOW. (**edit: OK, maybe not right now, but you know, in general, soonish. When you get a chance.)
This was a favorite destination during my childhood, and 30ish years later I have begun passing this experience on to my own child as well.
It’s great for kids of any age; my 18 month old loves feeding the (very gentle) goats and playing in the activity room, while older kids will enjoy the pretend veterinary clinic, grocery store, and dairy farm. Kids of any age will enjoy the nature trail, classes and parties!
Read Tegan’s review for more in-​depth information. It really is a great and cheap place to take the family on a nice day.
A couple of tips:
1. Don’t wear nice shoes, especially if it rained the day before!
2. Goat food is very cheap and feeding them is great fun for little kids. Even toddlers will be able to do this safely; the animals are very gentle and never bite!
3. Bring some wipes and hand sanitizer, just in case. They do have their own sani stations but it can’t hurt to be overprepared.
4. Consider a membership if you live nearby! For small kids, it’s a great activity for a nice day.
[Minor update: I am deducting a star due to the poor maintenance of their «dairy farm» area. It really needs to be repaired. I still love this place and I wholeheartedly recommend going here, but I feel I should mention that they would do well to update some of the damaged exhibits in the dairy farm section.]

I South Jersey gem… very inexpensive and lots and lots of fun

Regardless of the weather, Paws Farm is a great place to enjoy the day with your children. There are three indoor facilities with play areas and live animal exhibits. Outdoors offers many different things to explore. There are several wooden structures to play on, swing sets, a sandbox, butterfly garden, farm, and trails with more animals. It took us several visits to score the complete grounds because it’s so big.
I suggest buying into the yearly membership. It’s fully tax deductible because Paws is a non profit organization. You can buy a single day pass too. If you’re a Mount Laurel resident, then you get a small discount on daily passes.
Paws Farm has a great mission. They take in injured and abandoned animals and offer educational programs to children. Your children can learn about many types of wild and domesticated animals, local horticulture, where food comes from and more.
If you live close and have small children, I don’t doubt you will become a regular here. I’ve never been disappointed with a trip to this farm. It’s always clean and the faces are always friendly and helpful. It’s open year round from Wed — Sun from 10−4pm.