Rigden Ranch
Overview
Expert Summary
Detailed Insights
Rigden Ranch offers a unique and highly intimate animal encounter experience, diverging significantly from a typical zoo visit. Guests receive a private, personalized guided tour where they get extensive hands-on interaction, including feeding, petting, and even holding a wide variety of well-cared-for animals. The focus is on immersive education and direct engagement, making it an unforgettable and exceptional value for animal lovers.
Key Highlights
- ✓Private, personalized guided tours tailored to your group, ensuring an intimate experience.
- ✓Extensive hands-on animal interaction including feeding, petting, and opportunities to hold specific animals (e.g., capybara in lap, skunk on shoulder, shaking hands with a lemur).
- ✓Wide variety of exotic and domestic animals mentioned: capybaras, camels, lemurs, kangaroos, skunks, pigs, and barn cats.
- ✓Animals are described as happy, healthy, well-cared for, responsive to their names, and enjoying human company.
- ✓Highly knowledgeable, friendly, and engaging guides (Shane specifically mentioned) who provide fun facts, stories, and detailed backgrounds for each animal.
- ✓Food buckets are provided for feeding animals during the tour.
- ✓Ranch is consistently described as clean and well-kept.
Standout Features
- ⭐Private guided tours ensuring a personal and uncrowded experience.
- ⭐Direct and extensive up-close animal feeding and petting opportunities.
- ⭐Exceptional educational value with detailed animal facts and personalized stories from passionate guides.
- ⭐Observable high standard of animal welfare, with animals appearing happy and comfortable with human interaction.
- ⭐Friendly, knowledgeable, and engaging staff who make the experience fun.
- ⭐Clean and well-maintained facility.
- ⭐Unique hands-on interactions, such as having a capybara sit in your lap or a skunk nap on your shoulder.
Perfect For
Ideal For
💡Pro Tips from Reviews
- →Prepare for an immersive, hands-on experience; it's not a passive walk-through zoo.
- →Don't hesitate to ask your guide questions, as they are very knowledgeable and happy to provide information.
- →Listen carefully to the guide's instructions on how to safely interact with and hold certain animals.
- →Expect to spend significant time engaging directly with animals, as the tours allow for 'so much time for up close encounters'.
Things to Consider
- ⚠No specific problems or negative feedback reported; all reviews are 5-star, with one reviewer initially skeptical but ultimately understanding the high ratings.
Price & Value
While no explicit pricing is mentioned, multiple reviewers state the experience is 'well worth the money' and that they 'got so much more' than expected. Given the private tour format, extensive hands-on interaction, and personalized educational content, the value is consistently rated as excellent.
♿Accessibility & Special Needs
- •No specific accommodations for special needs are mentioned in the reviews.
🍎Food & Drink Policy
- •Food for feeding animals is provided as part of the tour experience. No information is available regarding outside food or human food/drink options.
🚗Parking Info
- •No information regarding parking is provided in the reviews.
👥Crowd Levels
- •Never too crowded, as the tours are private for your specific group. Reviewers explicitly state it's 'essentially a private tour' and they 'felt like we had the whole place to ourselves'.
🛡️Safety Features
- •Guides are 'very clear on how to act around and hold some of the critters', ensuring safe interactions.
- •Animals are described as 'super friendly' and 'well cared for', indicating a low-stress and safe environment for both animals and visitors.
⏰When to Avoid
- • No specific times or situations to avoid are mentioned, as the private tour format inherently prevents typical crowding issues and all reviews are overwhelmingly positive.
Pricing/Package/Events
Pricing & Packages
Capybara encounter
Camel Caravan
Wisconsin’s first camel caravan! This fun adventure will take you through the back acres of our old farm property, from the view of a camel’s back! Learn about one of the most adaptable animals on planet earth! All while taking a relaxing ride. Camels have been used as muscle and transportation for centuries.
Camel Rentals
For events such as a birthday party, company picnic, or a parade. Call or email to book.
Guided Tours / Farm Tours
Per human beingA personal guided tour through the ranch, getting up close and personal with 20+ species of exotic animals! Includes animal feeding (one bucket of produce).
Includes:
- •Personal guided tour
- •Interaction with 20+ species of exotic animals
- •One bucket of produce for animal feeding
🍎Food Policy
- • Extra buckets of animal food can be purchased for $20.
- • Bringing your own animal feed is strictly prohibited. One bucket of produce is provided per tour.
🛡️Safety Policy
- • No service animals of any kind are allowed on property due to the safety of our animals (disease, parasites, stress).
📅Booking Policy
- • All tours are private to those who book them.
- • Groups must be booked together. To add additional people, call or email.
- • Tours begin at the scheduled time. Showing up early does not grant more time with animals.
🚗Parking Information
- • Parking is available anywhere in the parking lot. Tour guide will meet guests there; do not explore.
Photos
What People Say
What's Great
- Fun and entertaining activities (mentioned in 7 reviews)
Recent Reviews
Kara Homan
7 months agoThis place was amazing! There was a group of 4 of us and we all had the best time, in fact it was all we talked about all day after! It wasn't your typical walk through and see the animals kind of zoo. We got to meet and feed most of the animals and Shane had fun facts, stories and names for all of them! We will definitely be back.
Stephanie T
8 months agoThis place is by far my favorite! The tour is private for you and your group- so much time for up close encounters with the animals! We fed the capys, camels, lemurs, etc. Shane is so knowledgeable and friendly and gives a wonderful background regarding each animal. It brought back fond memories of going there with my Mom and I was so excited to go with my daughter. 100/10 recommended!
Clouse
8 months agoAwesome tour of all the animals. You get led to each exhibit with a bucket of food to feed the animals while the guide tells you facts about whatever you are seeing. Got to have a capybara sit in my lap and shook hands with a lemur. All the animals were super friendly and it was a lot of fun joking with the guide. He answered all questions no matter how stupid and was very clear on how to act around and hold some of the critters. Was really there for the capybara but got so much more. 10/10 will be back for sure.
Megan L.
8 months agoWe recently visited Rigden Ranch, and I have to say, it was an unforgettable experience! I was initially skeptical because every review seemed to be 5 stars, but now I completely understand why. From the moment we arrived, it was clear that this ranch is something special. It was just my husband, our two kids, and me—essentially a private tour—and we felt like we had the whole place to ourselves. The variety of animals is incredible, from the popular capybaras to lemurs, kangaroos, camels, and so much more. Every single animal we encountered looked happy, healthy, and clearly well cared for. They even responded (and in the case of the pigs, even ran) to the call of their names, which shows how much positive interaction they have with people. You could tell they truly enjoy human company. The capybaras were a huge hit with my family, but my personal favorite was the skunk—an adorable ball of fluff that napped right on my shoulder! The camels were surprisingly affectionate and even showed love to the barn cats. It was all so heartwarming. The ranch is clean, well-kept, and the staff is beyond knowledgeable. Our tour guide knew everything about the animals and made the whole experience educational and fun. I genuinely have nothing negative to say. It’s well worth the money, and my only regret is not discovering this gem sooner—we could have made several trips this summer alone! If you're looking for a unique and enjoyable outing, Rigden Ranch is it. We’ll definitely be back!
Mia Lockhart
11 months agoMe and my boyfriend had an amazing time here! It was super informational and we had such a fun time with our guide! The animals were super cute and it was so fun getting to feed and pet all the different critters. I would definitely come back again, 10/10 recommend!!