Germany - Wildpark near Munich
The Wildpark
Where can you find a peacock on a playground? This one was in the Wildpark Animal Sanctuary (https://www.wildpark-poing.de/) just outside of Munich, Germany. This park is impressive. We've all been to petting zoos before, but chances are good you haven't been to one like this. Many of the animals freely roam the trails that wind through the park making for an unforgettable experience. Here's just a few of my favorites.
Little Deer
Whether these little guys are deer, antelope, or something in between I can't tell, but they sure are cute. While some of them stay far away in green fields along the path, many of them like to interact with visitors and eagerly search you for food.
As you can see, these deer aren't shy. They mob visitors as they pass by, and sometimes even charge at them. Don't worry though, it's just because they are anxious to eat food from your hand.
The Wolf Pack
While it's completely fine to feed the deer, this sign makes sure that you know it's verboten to feed the wolves. On the day we were visiting, the wolves were pretty sleepy.
They didn't seem to want to welcome visitors, but I managed to get a quick shot of these two playing King of the Hill. The enclosure for the wolves was extensive, but there were ruts in the ground from where they regularly paced, probably trying to figure out how they can get to those tasty little deer.
The Birds
Many of the birds at the Wildpark were also allowed to roam freely. This one seemed to have his own little niche all carved out for him. I love the purple cast to his feathers, and it seems as if he does too with the way he's searching for his reflection in the murky pond.
While there were many owls here, this one really loved posing for the camera.
How long did it take you to find the owl in this photo? ;-)
Goats!!
These goats were really hamming it up for the camera. While most of the critters here only came near visitors who had food in hand, the goats were the exception.
This little goat came over looking for food but got petted instead. He must have liked it, because when I stood up to leave, he stood up on the fence rail and bleated at me! I resumed the petting at once.
Raccoons
Raccoons may have a bad reputation, but these masked bandits were little cuties. They were the friendliest raccoons ever!
As we watched the coons, one of them strolled all the way around the enclosure, came right up to the fence and stuck his little paw through. Matthew knelt down and shook his hand. The raccoon, satisfied, finished with his perimeter check and went back to laying in the shade.
More Birds
These swans (geese?) really stole the show. Their dark plumage made them stand out from the rest of the brown and white birds swimming in the pond.
The Wildpark also featured many bird of prey, including hawks, falcons, and eagles. This vulture was the most photogenic on the day of our visit as he is used to the extremely hot weather. The rest of the large birds were all hanging out in the shade trying to stay cool.
Bear Drama
These bears sure were being dramatic during our visit. The two bears to the left had only moment earlier been in a little tiff - presumably over the lady bear to the right. By this point, they seem to have cooled down, and it looks like one bear is trying to get back in her good graces.
The above photo is during the bear standoff. I'm just glad they came to a peaceful resolution. It was a lovely day at Wildpark Poing and it would have been tarnished had there been bloodshed.
Thanks so much for joining us in the Wildpark. To book your own wild adventure, find me at http://travellifeservicesllc.com/
Happy Travels
Jennifer
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Animation By @zord189
As always, all pics are taken by me and used with my permission. I even wrote the words all by myself. :-)
Jennifer....omggggg!!!!! I can't even tell you how much I loved this post. Wait a minute...yes I can. I am not ashamed to admit that I loved this post and the wildlife in it so much that I actually cried a few happy tears. Maybe that's cheesey, but to me it's pretty sweet that it had such an effect ;) Especially that raccoon, he really got me right in the heart. Thank you for sharing the awesomeness <333
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Awww, that's awesome. I'm glad you enjoyed it so much. That little raccoon was a heart-breaker that's for sure. <3
I love going to see animals like this, but always saddens me that they are enclosed. My heart goes out the places that have these parks to help rehabilitate the animals.
Great pictures. I think I would have stayed longer with the wolves. Such beautiful creatures they are.
Thank you! Yes, I would have liked to have spent more time with the wolves, but they were being shy that day. I did sit quietly and wait for them on a bench near the enclosure for about 30 minutes...but they remained mostly out of sight. The two on the hilltop were the only wolves I spotted, and even they didn't stay out for very long.
Ya you were there for quite a bit. I watched a small documentary somewhere, where they put a few wolves back into the wild in Yellowstone and how the wolves helped out nature become more balanced. Have you seen that? Totally worth checking out. It is beautiful actually.
I think I saw it a while back. I love Yellowstone. I was there several years ago and saw their Bear and Wolf Preserve in the adjacent city of West Yellowstone. It was neat....but I felt sooooooo bad for the wolves. It must be awful to live in a cage with all that natural beauty and wilderness nearby. I wonder if those were the wolves they reintroduced to the park.
It is so hard to see. Hopefully they are the ones they let go :)
Now this is what I am talking about. Where animals could roam free and they have enough space to move around. I hate seeing places where animals looks so un happy which is very depressing. The bears looks so satisfied although with a little conflict they are being bears as they should be.
Yes!!! The bears were free to be dramatic! Many places I think would have just separated them so these natural dramas weren't allowed to play out.
I heard about this wildpark but never made it there. I'm not a big fan of such places but these animals look healthy and happy :)
I love the second photo. They are so curious! :)
They definitely seemed to be both happy and healthy. That's one of the things that made this park so nice. The only creatures I felt were not being treated well were the wolves and the big cats. They need tons of space to roam, and while they had a nice sized enclosure, it simply wasn't enough for these wandering creatures.
It's beautiful park! The blue shade of the peacock seems nice. :3 I've never really seen peacocks before. XD
Thank you! Peacocks are really neat animals in person. They are territorial so they make great guard animals, and they are really, really, really loud too. Their cry sounds like a woman screaming! The females aren't nearly as colorful, so you rarely see them in photos, but they are neat too.
What a great looking place to spend some time. The peacock was gorgeous and I always love hanging out with goats!
Thanks for commenting. Goats are a strange species, but it's wonderful when you find the affectionate ones. There were others that were content to mean mug me from off in the distance. They were too cool for petting. 😀
This place is definitely a WILDpark! Thanks for sharing and I know if I'm ever outside of Munich, Germany it's worth a stop! Thanks for sharing & have a nice weekend.
Thanks for commenting! I'm glad you enjoyed the post. 😀
I did thanks!
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it's a long time since i was in zoo)) thanks for your photos!
Thanks for stopping by to check them out. I hadn't been to a zoo in ages myself, but now I'm thinking I'll have to go a little more regularly.
They're so adorable especially the deer and the bear.
The bear were so animated. It was if they were living in a soap opera. :-)