You Can Buy Animal Food And Pet Giraffes At This Family-Run Zoo In Rural West Virginia

A giraffe will eat right out of your hand. That is the kind of wild you get here.

This is a small family-run zoo tucked into rural West Virginia, where animals are not just exhibits, they are the main event.

You are not behind a fence watching from a safe distance, you are up close, interacting, and maybe getting nudged by a friendly camel looking for a snack.

Tigers pace with a regal presence, chimpanzees watch you with curious eyes, and the bird room is full of chaos and color.

The whole place has an energy that bigger zoos cannot replicate. It feels personal, a little unpredictable, and deeply unforgettable.

West Virginia has a wild side, and this spot proves it in the most hands-on way possible.

Are you ready to meet the residents?

Feed the Animals and Feel Like Part of the Family

There is something genuinely special about walking into a zoo and being handed food the moment you arrive. At Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo, feeding the animals is not just an add-on activity, it is practically the whole spirit of the place.

You can purchase animal food right at the entrance, which sets the tone for an interactive visit from the very start.

The treats available are surprisingly varied. Carrots, granola bars, zoo biscuits, popcorn, birdseed sticks, and grass feed are all options you can grab before heading in.

Each type of food is matched to specific animals, and clear signage throughout the zoo tells you exactly who gets what.

Goats, llamas, deer, and other hoofstock eagerly approach the fencing, ready for a snack and a little attention. The whole experience feels less like visiting a zoo and more like dropping by a farm where everyone knows your name.

It is warm, unhurried, and genuinely fun for every age group visiting that day.

Petting a Giraffe in Rural West Virginia Is No Joke

Standing a few feet away from a giraffe while it stretches its neck toward your outstretched hand is not something most people expect to do on a Tuesday in West Virginia. Yet that is exactly what happens at Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo, and it is every bit as thrilling as it sounds.

The giraffes here are comfortable around people and genuinely seem to enjoy the interaction.

Watching that long tongue curl around a carrot is one of those moments that sticks with you. It is oddly funny, a little wet, and completely unforgettable.

Kids absolutely lose their minds over it, and honestly, so do the adults standing right beside them.

Zeus, one of the resident giraffes, has become something of a local celebrity for his affectionate personality and love of having his head rubbed. Feeding him feels personal, like meeting someone rather than simply observing an animal.

This is the kind of encounter that turns a casual day trip into a story you tell for years afterward.

From Lions to Lemurs This Place Has It All

Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo started small, but it has grown into something impressively diverse over its more than three decades of operation. The animal collection now spans continents and ecosystems, giving visitors a genuinely wide-ranging wildlife experience without ever leaving West Virginia.

Big cats are a major draw, with African lions, Bengal tigers, and leopards all calling this place home.

The primate section alone could keep you busy for a while. Chimpanzees, ringtail lemurs, Japanese macaques, baboons, and various monkey species are all part of the mix.

Watching them interact with each other and react to visitors passing by is endlessly entertaining.

Beyond the mammals, the zoo also features alligators, ostriches, emus, capybaras, flamingos, reptiles, and a colorful variety of birds. Zebras can be spotted near the parking lot area, and kangaroos are visible as you turn into the main road.

The sheer variety packed into this rural setting is genuinely surprising. Every turn reveals something new, and the whole collection has a scope that rivals much larger facilities in bigger cities.

A Zoo That Lets You Get Closer Than You Expected

Most zoos keep you at a comfortable distance from the animals, separated by wide moats or tall barriers. Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo takes a different approach, and the result is an experience that feels refreshingly intimate.

Getting close is kind of the whole point here, and the layout of the zoo is designed to make that happen naturally.

As you walk the grounds, you move through and alongside various enclosures in a way that puts you right in the action. Camels lean over fences looking for treats.

Monkeys peer curiously from just a few feet away. The proximity feels exciting rather than alarming, partly because the animals here are clearly accustomed to human presence.

Beyond the casual walk-through, the zoo also offers educational animal encounters that go even deeper into understanding specific species and their behaviors. These presentations add real context to what you are seeing and feeding throughout the day.

Whether you are eight years old or eighty, that sense of closeness makes the whole visit feel genuinely memorable and alive.

Is This a Zoo or a Backyard Safari?

There is a moment somewhere between feeding the camels and spotting the zebras that the whole place starts to feel less like a zoo and more like a personal safari through someone’s very ambitious backyard. The wooded setting helps a lot with that feeling.

Tall trees provide shade along the paths, and the natural surroundings make the whole experience feel organic rather than artificial.

The layout encourages you to wander at your own pace, which adds to the adventure. There is no strict route or timed tour pushing you forward.

You can linger at the giraffe enclosure as long as you want, circle back to the monkey section, or spend extra time in the parakeet house without feeling rushed.

Spending two and a half to three hours exploring the grounds is pretty common for most visitors, and it rarely feels like enough time. The combination of exotic species, hands-on feeding, and a relaxed wooded atmosphere creates something genuinely different from a typical zoo outing.

This place has a personality all its own, and that personality is wild in the very best way.

Animal Food in Your Hand and Memories in Your Heart

Of all the interactive experiences at Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo, the parakeet enclosure might be the one that catches people most off guard. You walk in holding a birdseed stick, and within seconds, dozens of colorful birds land directly on it, and sometimes on your arms and shoulders too.

It is chaotic, joyful, and slightly hilarious all at once.

The parakeet house works best for older kids and adults who can stay calm and steady while the birds swarm around them. Younger children sometimes find the fluttering wings overwhelming, but older visitors tend to absolutely love every second of it.

Having the birds perch right on you feels like something out of a storybook.

Beyond the bird house, hand-feeding giraffes, goats, camels, and deer creates a series of small moments that add up to something genuinely meaningful by the end of the day.

There is a particular kind of joy that comes from connecting directly with an animal, feeling it take food gently from your fingers.

Those moments are simple, but they are the ones people talk about long after the visit ends.

A Rural Escape Where Exotic Animals Steal the Show

Preston County, West Virginia is not the first place most people picture when they think of exotic wildlife. That is exactly what makes discovering Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo feel so rewarding.

The setting is genuinely beautiful, with mature trees shading the paths and a natural landscape that frames every animal encounter in something that feels almost cinematic.

Flamingos were added as a newer attraction, and spotting their bright pink feathers against the green backdrop of the West Virginia woods creates a delightful visual contrast.

Bears, cougars, hyenas, and big cats round out the more dramatic side of the collection, offering the kind of powerful wildlife sightings you would normally associate with much larger facilities.

The rural location also means crowds tend to stay manageable compared to big-city zoos. On quieter days, you can practically have the whole place to yourself, moving from enclosure to enclosure with a sense of space and calm that is hard to find elsewhere.

That combination of exotic animals and serene surroundings makes Hovatter’s feel like a genuine escape from the ordinary pace of everyday life.

Petting Zoos Are Cute But This One Is Wild

Most petting zoos top out at goats and maybe a miniature horse if you are lucky. Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo operates on a completely different level.

Yes, there are friendly domestic animals that love attention and treats, but the list of species you can actually interact with here goes way beyond anything a typical petting zoo offers.

Feeding camels through the fence is an experience worth mentioning on its own. They are expressive, a little goofy, and surprisingly gentle when they take food from your hand.

Deer approach calmly, goats are their usual enthusiastic selves, and monkeys watch with intense curiosity from nearby enclosures.

Clear signage throughout the zoo tells visitors exactly which animals can be fed and which types of food are appropriate for each species. That level of organization makes the whole experience feel safe and well-managed, even with so many interactive opportunities available.

The balance between wild and approachable is what sets this place apart from anything else in the region. It is a petting zoo that somehow also contains lions, and that combination is genuinely hard to beat.

West Virginia’s Hidden Safari Waiting for You

Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo is often called the West Virginia Zoo, and after spending a few hours wandering its shaded paths and hand-feeding its residents, it is easy to understand why that title fits.

The zoo opens seasonally from mid-April through October, with limited hours extending into November, making spring and summer visits especially popular with families planning day trips.

The drive to Kingwood through the rolling hills of West Virginia is part of the experience. Arriving on Wagner Lane feels like uncovering something the rest of the world has not quite caught on to yet.

That sense of discovery makes the whole outing feel a little more personal and a little more special than a typical tourist attraction.

Whether you are bringing young kids for their first up-close animal encounter or looking for a genuinely unique day out with family, this zoo delivers something hard to replicate.

The animals are well-fed, the grounds are clean, and the interactive opportunities are unlike anything else in the region.

Come hungry for adventure, bring some cash for the animal food, and prepare to leave with a full heart.

Address: 291 Wagner Ln, Kingwood, WV