Oaklawn Farm Zoo closing its gates, exotic animals moving to new homes
The roars, grunts and howls will fall silent at the Oaklawn Farm Zoo in 2024.
“As many of you know, Oaklawn will not be opening in ’24,” reads a Facebook post from the management of the zoo that has been welcoming children, families and school trips to the Aylesford location halfway between Kentville and Middleton since 1984.
“We could like to thank you for your kindness and support over the past 40-plus years,” the Facebook post reads.
“Arrangements have been made at responsible facilities for the animals seeking new homes.”
Those animals are a mix of exotic, endangered and rescued animal species, from lions to lemurs, peacocks to pythons, goats to gibbons and a wide variety of others.
Oaklawn Farm provided an up-close animal experience and its mission was to connect people with animals and to help inspire a further appreciation for wildlife and nature.
The family-owned zoo owned and operated by Ron and Gail Rogerson boasted the largest display of big cats and primates in Eastern Canada.
“Having reached our declining years, we appreciate your respecting our privacy and wish you all the best in ’24,” the family said in the Facebook post.
The zoo would open each year at Easter time and remain open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., from Good Friday through mid-November.
The admission rates in its last season were $10.50 for adults, $5 for students, $3.50 for children aged three to 12 and free for those two and under. Group rates and season passes were available.
“It’s a sad day for Nova Scotia,” said an Oaklawn fan in a Facebook post. “I’ve always loved going to Oaklawn Farm Zoo whether with family or on a school trip. So many memories there — like the first time I saw a Zonkey! A visit to Oaklawn was always a fun, educationally filled day that ended with a mandatory ice cream.”
Another posted about “a lifetime of memories going to the zoo, and I’m glad my last one involved my mom and me and my best friend of 30 years bringing our children for their first time. Bittersweet!”
Another poster thanked the zoo operators for “so many memories here. Grew up with Oakland Farm zoo.”
And from another post: “You will be greatly missed, thank you for all you did.”
But not everyone is sad to see the zoo closing.
“This is the best news,” said one poster to Facebook. “Zoos are prisons for the innocent. Animals don’t belong in cages, being exploited for profit by humans. They belong in their natural habitat. Hopefully the animals can live out the rest of their lives in sanctuaries.”
The zoo suffered a setback in August with the unexpected death of Nyah, the largest of the zoo’s two lionesses and the matriarch of the lion pride.
One of Oaklawn Farm Zoo’s most popular animals, Nyah was a constant companion for Sterk and mother to Hunter and NneNne. She arrived in Aylesford as a half-grown cub in November 2013 from the Elmvale Jungle Zoo in Ontario, about a year after Sterk arrived.
