Sussex, NJ - this is the kind of kitschy, offbeat attraction with old-timey country charm that appeals to my sensibilities. It took me a year to finally write this review, but at least I didn't hold out for their 100th anniversary next year. Founded in 1927 by the Space family (currently owned by NJ senator Parker Space and still family-run), this privately held wildlife collection encompasses 500+ animals across 100 species, housed on a 100-acre property that also showcases collections of antique cars, motorbikes, vintage firearms, tools & machinery, minerals, Native American arrowheads & artifacts, a doll museum, and other eclectic Americana chronicling the area's rural heritage. It's less "zoo" than your eccentric great-uncle's farmhouse antique emporium, if he also owned lions and tigers and bears, oh my! The great hall makes a striking first impression, as you are greeted by Goliath, a massive Kodiak bear that was once one of the largest bears ever in captivity, and his other taxidermied friends. Although I'm in principle not a fan of zoos and am conflicted about them, I didn't feel the animals here fared much worse than at your average commercial zoo, though the enclosures are more basic, and some of the animals like the baboons and bears could use more room and things to play with. Some of the exhibits are more farm-style so you can get closer to the animals. (Sadly, I saw a dead newborn deer and flagged down a groundskeeper. Don't know if it died at birth or due to the heat or other reasons.) If it gets too hot out, you can duck into one of several barn museums and check out the displays and knick knacks. There are benches scattered around, and a shaded picnic shed by the pig pen. There are a couple of small playgrounds as well, and an ok pizza restaurant on premises. A 3.5% credit card fee applies everywhere including for tickets and gift shop merch, which is the first I've encountered for a non-restaurant. (The branded tiger hoodie sweatshirt I got for my child is hella cute though and great quality.) The backstory of how the founding farmer couple started this zoo - which began as a small general store, repair shop, and wild animal shelter - and kept their livelihood going through the Great Depression is a classic scrappy American bootstrap tale of achieving success through grit, hard work, and resourcefulness. And there's something to be said about an enterprise that has lasted a century in the same family. I think this place is pretty neat so 4 stars for the uniqueness, nostalgia factor, and non-conventional down-homeness in a world of glossy uniformity. read more

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The care they provide to the animals is disgusting. It looks like an abandoned zoo. Be prepared to cry and leave feeling guilty read more

Space Farms - Abused African hyena - Zoos Near Me - Sussex, New Jersey

So well kept. Friendly staff. Even friendlier animals. The grounds are clean. The animals well cared for. It is such a wonderful, self guided experience. read more

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I love going here, I love seeing all the animals and antiques. The food is excellent and the staff are friendly. read more

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Horrible living conditions for these animals. Enclosures were way too small and completely heartbreaking. Animals were clearly stressed. The meat they gave some of their animals looked and smelled rotten. Please do not give your money to this place. read more

It was a good place to visit on a rainy day. The place is clean and a good healthy walk around many different exhibits. There are buildings to shelter in if it's raining hard and they are packed cool things to see if you're interested in the past. The animals are very beautiful and seem healthy. Children will love running and playing in the many playgrounds too. read more

Ended up here randomly on Indigenous People's day and we had such a good time. It is kind of pricey in my opinion but there is a lot of ground to cover and they have so many animals. They accept cards too! Lots of parking across the street. I'm not a huge fan of zoos but if you're into it this is def a spot worth checking out. We saw lions, tigers, bears, all types of deer, and more. They also had museums which had pretty cool stuff. There is space inside to have lunch and there is also tables outside you can snack at. They have playgrounds for the kids too. read more

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You could easily spend the whole day here. I'm just concerned about the animals I didn't see any zookeepers in site and you can get pretty close read more

I've been going here my entire life. Sadly it's just a shell of its former glory. Now that I found out they're tRumpanzees I will not be returning. Oddly enough the "notsee" memorabilia is displayed in the same cabinet as the tRump memorabilia. How fitting. read more

This was the most depressing zoo I have ever been too. We saw at least 3 dead animals and not a single person walking around or caring for the animal other than one man that worked there was petting the big black cat. All the animals looked sickly. The enclosure for the larger animals were so small. I wild like for this place to be reported for lack of proper care. I made me so incredibly sad to see how poorly they were taken care of. We will not be visiting again or recommending it to anyone. read more

I went for the first time and it was just sad, enclosures for the bigger animals like the panther,lion and tigers were small. The animals were uninterested in doing anything in their tiny enclosures I have been to many zoos but this was disappointing. I'm sure it meets regulations but it's not humane. These beautiful animals need an enclosure to allow them ample exercise. Restore dignity to these majestic creatures. read more

Not sure now I feel about this place. I don't support zoos and I thought that you would be able to pet the animals. I felt bad for the animals because it was hot. Like others said, it was shocking to see deer legs in the enclosures. Would I go back, probably not. Place did smell in some locations but that's expected. read more

This place was horribly run. Animal abuse as far as the eye can see. From animals that were very skinny to animals with bloody wounds on their bodies (male lions). There was also a pen with 2 hens and about 6 roosters. They were so badly abused and over mated the 2 females were bald in several places. The facility itself stunk in the buildings and were poorly maintained. I know it's owned by some senator and that's why despite the many many claims from various groups it looks like nothing with change. Horrible!!! Don't go! Go elsewhere. read more

Love it here. Been coming here since I was a baby. I seen other comments about the cages being too small and the animals not being taken care of. Which isn't true at all. The animals are taken care of very well and the cages are perfect for each animal. read more

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Very well organized drive-thru Zoo due to Covid-19. Felt Very Safe with everyone in their Vehicles. Not a long drive-thru but you can burn an hour with heavy traffic within the Zoo on weekends. It's something to do with your Children. -Not allowed out of your cars. -6 feet apart vehicles are not enforced; so Bumper to Bumper with traffic within the Zoo. -Go before 11AM for less traffic read more

Space Farms - Siberian Tiger viewing from the Car due to Covid-19 social distancing. Well Organized & very Safe! - Zoos Near Me - Sussex, New Jersey

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Very clean and calm and open area to roam and relax and spend time with family. Affordable prices lots of interesting animals and museum exhibits. One of a lind and worth visiting read more

Soo sad this place use to be soo nice...I went back after several years and the animals were in small enclosures we even saw a Zuri cat dead in its enclosure!!! We were there about 2 hrs and did not even see one staff member around the area. They should shut down the space!!!! read more

Great time. The kids loved it! Beautiful space and it's clear the animals are very well taken care of. Highly recommend!

What makes this place most unique is the amount of animals located on premises. Over 500 animals! As the name states, I would definitely describe this place as a zoo and museums located on farm land. Parking is located across the street. As you enter to the left you have the option of entering a pizzeria. To the right you have a mini museum full of taxidermies. Upon arrival the employee was friendly to greet us and explained the area/map for us. She also gave us the option to purchase corn and crackers in advance to feed the animals. As we begin our adventure we walk near our first set of animals. It was an area full of chicken, roosters and goats. Continuing on the trail, it is very easy to navigate. Along the trails I felt like most of the animals were easy to feed. Most of what we fed were deers, goats and sheep. As we got to the bears we were fortunate to see the workers feed them. The worker even got the bears to stand and wave! Many animals I didn't realize were there as the signs weren't visible/big enough. Names are located on a regular sized paper. Therefore you must walk to each side of the fence to read it. I completely recommend using the map for full guidance. The museums are worth the walk and view especially for those who enjoy antiques. Look out for the bell tower as it can also be seen when driving here. Another enjoyable area is the picnic/play area that even has slides. read more

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I think the only beautiful thing at this place was the colors of the peacocks, other than that this place is quite depressing and shouldn't be called a zoo. I agree with the other reviews, it's more like an animal concentration camp. First thing I noticed walking around near where you eat their "incredible pizza" which was rather disgusting is the tanks filled with big snakes. Boas and pythons are in 40-60gal tanks, some sharing with two other snakes. Next thing I noticed was after spending $20.50/adult to go outside was the baby alligator in a fish tank and the horrendous smell of rotting flesh and fox piss. There was a bear sitting in an enclosure with multiple foxes and after them, lions - tigers - pumas - and more.... I agree the animals all looked miserable and hungry. There was even a sign outside saying "feeding today at 12:45" and I joked: what, is that the only time they're fed? Bc it's true.... There really is no shade for the animals except these shabby huts. The wolves are surrounded by their prey, the bears, Mt lions, and smaller animals all pace their cages. I don't know about the kangaroos or monkeys cause after doing the big circle we were all done. Especially after the cherry was plopped on top when an old sheep came to us from across the way for corn. The wool on this creature was so matted and thick, you could see it struggling to walk. Not to mention the nails on em were long and curling up. It was very sad to see. This place is definitely not a place I would recommend. I remember going when I was younger but didn't think or rather remember it being this bad. Contacting PETA is useless for those calling on them to do something. The people of Sussex need to get petitions signed and brought to the county to have this taken care of. But if any of them truly cared, this place would've been shut down a long time ago. Don't waste your time or money going. There's other things to do in the area than have your heart broken and a cloud of depression to follow you around for the day. read more

Holy Cow! It felt like we were in a safari trip but with gates in between you and the animals. We were so darn close that you were able to smell the breath of the animals. There were very few visitors which is sad as this is an amazing place for kids of all ages. I highly recommend this beautiful animals sanctuary to everyone who is a animal lover or with kids. read more

Space Farms - Map. - Zoos Near Me - Sussex, New Jersey

The Museum is very interesting, but that zoo is unethical. While I understand it's intended to be one of those old-school roadside attractions, it suffers from all the ethical problems you would expect from that. While the staff is fine, the facility's maintenance is poor and the animal enclosures on the zoo side don't seem right. The big cat enclosures, in particular, are WAY too small and flat for these animals, and the enclosures in general feel like a problem. This includes too many creatures blended with and enclosed together. The animal feed given to guests for feeding is also incredibly unhealthy for them. However, I will say the animals do look healthy and don't necessarily look unkept or ragged. I'm not intending to paint some horrendous, deplorable picture, but I am suspicious about cost-cutting in favor of "family fun". read more

Ok, so the zoo is pretty bad. It makes Joe Exotic look like Ace Ventura. Tiny cages. Zero habitat (at all). Smells really bad. There's rotting meat in the cages. I mean, you are allowed to feed ANY animals cookies and dried corn. Yes, you can feed a Kodiak bear cookies. I'm not veterinarian, but I'm pretty sure that's not good. I'm sure they've been cited many times for violations. No one should support this. BUT, the "museums" are something to see. In a strange "I can't believe someone collected all of this" kinda way. Barns and barns filled with antique cars, farm equipment, tools all dating back to the 1800s. I mean HUNDREDS of tools. Then there's the civil war era gun collection, antique freaky-as-hell doll collection, random dishes, arrowheads...I mean so much stuff it is shocking. BUT, my favorite by far is the random animal fetuses preserved in mayonnaise jars from 1930. YES, I'm serious. Beavers, dear, bobcats, snakes all preserved in jars. So, in summary, I would not support this place purely for ethical reasons. It should probably be shut down and the animals moved somewhere more appropriate. BUT, I wish I could pay just to go see this bizarre museum collection. It's WIERD NJ all the way. read more

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I was pretty disturbed after coming to Space Farms for their "drive through" zoo experience. I understand they needed to make money and open to some capacity in order to continue maintaining their animals, but this was so poorly managed. The price was $25 per car and you could add on feed for an additional fee. The whole thing just seemed like a quick cash grab and wasn't thought out well at all. Nobody was on the trails directing cars or managing how long some people were idle in front of exhibits. We nearly ran out of gas since it took over 2.5 hours to get through it. One of the issues was the traffic coming in from two directions, there seemed to be two entrances which caused a lot of chaos on the driving path. We went with an infant thinking it would be a quick way to show him animals for the first time, but you could hardly see anything from the road. The enclosures were very small and seemed inappropriate for the type of animals that they housed. Some animals were native to the area and I wonder if they just capture them for their zoo. They do have a lion and tiger which were front and center. A few animals looked ill and had missing fur, I'm not sure what was normal and what wasn't. Compared to Turtle Back, this place is like your backyard zoo. Normally I love zoos, but this place made me uncomfortable and depressed. I felt sad for the animals. The zoo looks like it is situated on an abandoned farm. All of the original buildings are still there and it definitely has a creepy vibe. It's nice to have a zoo in the community but this one didn't seem to be getting any funding that it needs in order to maintain the facilities. I hope things change for the sake of the animals. read more

(Second review, addendum to my previous.) From The Humane Society of the US: "Space Farms Zoo has been cited numerous times for violating the minimum standards of the federal Animal Welfare Act. Since 2012, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has cited Space Farms for failure to maintain enclosures in good repair, poor sanitation, dirty drinking water, improper food storage, failure to provide veterinary care to woodchucks missing patches of fur, inadequate environment enrichment to promote the psychological well-being of primates, inadequate drainage in a hyena enclosure, failure to have a veterinarian-approved diet plan for big cats, and improper feeding of a grossly obese bear." Enough said. Don't support this nightmare. read more

No one who truly loved animals would give money to, or support this business. These animals are in small enclosures that are completely under-stimulating, with no shade places to hide. I've reported them to PETA and I'm now writing to my congressman and the Governor. If anyone has any other ideas of how to shut this place down, I would be happy to donate my time or money. read more

They should really shut down this zoo. Habitat for the animals are horrible. They have monkeys in a small cages with no grass or even a tree to swing. Lion with barely space to walk around . The place looks dead dry dirt, hardly any fresh grass . I truly feel so sad for those animals read more

This is a nice small zoo. You have plenty of room to practice social distancing. The animals look pretty happy. Some of the cats and bears need bigger cages. read more

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With three grandchildren ranging in age from 2 to 14, it's difficult to keep everyone entertained at the same time or at the same venue. However, our trip today to Space Farms was as good as it can get. The older girls loved the larger animals, i. e., the lions, tigers, bears and bison while the little guy was fascinated by the various types of baby deer and foxes that were at his eye level and could almost climb into his stroller. While their mother and I were truly impressed by the variety of animals and birds on display, seeing the children run from one animal to the next was worth the trip. As for me, in addition to the animals, I also enjoyed the antique car museum. Thank you for a great afternoon. read more

A lot of mixed reviews here but it really is a nice place. I went every other weekend with my son when he was young. The staff is kind and they really care about the animals! read more

I actually enjoyed the museum areas more than the zoo but overall, I thought this place was great! This place is pretty much in the middle of nowhere and on the day I went, it was pretty chilly and no one was there so my boyfriend and I had the whole place to ourselves which was awesome! The staff was extremely friendly and $18 per person to get in is not a bad fee at all. I wish this place had elephants and giraffes... it's pretty much the only animals they are missing. Space Farms Zoo was fun though and I'd definitely come back! read more

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My husband and I took my almost 2 year old daughter here a couple of weeks ago and we all had a blast. When you enter there is a museum and pizza shop, past that is the gift shop and area to purchase tickets. When you purchase your tickets you have the option to purchase animal crackers and corn to feed the animals. They provide you with a map and you go at your own pace and whatever order you please, as there are a few different paths. We had been to a big zoo about a month before and most of the animals were in habitats where they couldn't be seen, here almost every single animal was out and able to be seen. My daughter had a blast feeding the animals, it wasn't over crowded, and for the price it couldn't be beat. We will definitely return. read more

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Amazing zoo - people are extremely friendly - feedings with Lori are great hands on and informative - nice open grassy area unlike every other zoo - best of all, they give you treats to feed the animals including bears that do tricks like wave and smile, not only is this fun but it makes the animals excited to see humans approach. Overall best zoo experience I've ever had going back 100%. read more

Space Farms - Tiger feeding - Zoos Near Me - Sussex, New Jersey

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This place is horrible ... truly horrible. They have a poor lion that appears drugged just lying there on concrete in a cage that is way too small for him with his tongue just out on the concrete... Parrots in tiny itty-bitty cages... Animals that are alone in solitary ... in cages... And evidently they have a breeding license and the poor bear that they are breeding is in a cage way too small for her. She can hardly move. I cannot stand roadside zoos. They are some of the worst animal abusers and this place is no better. Just heartbreaking. Do yourself a favor. Don't go. read more

I understand that everyone is trying to make a living, especially during current times, but there is on reason to treat animals in this way for any amount of money. Some of the world's most majestic animals were confined in unfit cages which allowed them little to no freedom to exercise or roam in any capacity - critical for the development of any wild animal. Several animals also appeared to be malnourished (llamas especially) and I mistook one for being deceased. Some visitors often took little care in their treatment of the animals as they were allow to throw food from their cars into cages. I refrain from writing poor reviews since they directly affect people's perceptions of a business, however, I do encourage the staff at the zoo and potential visitors to rethink the care that is provided to animals and the operation they are running overall. read more

PLEASE DO NOT GO HERE! Horrible place, the animals are in TINY cages, pacing back and forth living a horribly sad & empty life. I understand wanting to educate your children about animals, but this is the WRONG WAY to do it. Please do not support this place! All places like this need to be SHUT DOWN!! Your entertainment for an afternoon is supporting making the lives of these animals miserable. Please make conscious decisions. read more

I'm not a supporter of Zoos to begin with, but this has to be one of the worst in the US. The conditions of the animals is HORRIFYING. I'm honestly shocked this place is still open. The animals cages are so TINY. Watching the jaguar made me tear up. He was pacing back and forth panting in a cage that was on a cement block and the cage was old, rusty, and the size of some people's closets. All of the animals looked depressed. Please do me and yourself a favor and don't go there. read more

The kids loved it. Some of the buildings could use some better exterior maintenance and design updates, but you get what you pay for. The anti-zoo crowd (including those that only want government run zoos) will complain about this place not being "word class", but at the end of the day it is low cost access to see various (sometimes exotic) animals. On top of the zoo, the previous owners seemed to be collectors (*cough* hoarders *cough*) of various items, which are on display in the various museum buildings/rooms. There are some exhibits in the entry/pizza restaurant that are actually free to view. read more

I came here over the weekend with my family and I was really shocked about this place. In the middle of New Jersey you can find lions and tigers and bears!? There are a wide variety of animals: Syrian bears, foxes, emus, angry llamas, bison, various sheep, goats & deer, a jaguar, lions, tigers, servals, bob cats, baboons, lemurs, snakes. Most of them seem to have adequate space. I kind of feel like the jaguar is not comfortable, she was growling and moaning the whole time, maybe she was in heat? I would give this place 3.5 stars if that were possible because I think a lot of the larger carnivores need a lot more stimulation or toys. There is a massively obese bear that just rocks in a corner. The lions are also obese. Most of the habitats are decently sized with shade and sun. The bears have it best with hidey-holes and trees and vultures to chase around. The car collection is simply astonishing. It was a perfect place for us! Husband likes the cars, I like the animals, plus - the pizza place has GLUTEN FREE PIZZA! Win. read more

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Amazing place. I never miss it for a day trip when camping in Sussex county. It really is like no other zoo I've ever been to. They have everything here from reptiles to exotic avian species to large carnivores and everything in between . The enclosures are only feet away from the patrons and you can buy corn or crackers to feed certain animals ( what zoo allows that?). The zoo takes in rescues from lab animals and fish and wildlife seizures as well as contracts with the county to remove roadkill daily to feed the bears and big cats. On top of the zoo, Space Farms has an incredible museum of antique vehicles as well as antique firearms and artifacts that are connected with Sussex County. I read many of the negative comments on here and I had no idea the amount of animal behavior experts and veterinary experts that use Yelp. Smh. If you have a chance to go to Space Farms, go. You won't be disappointed. read more

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