All About the Barnyard at Orr’s
The Barnyard at Orr’s has been open since 2018. It originally started as the new location for our pumpkin patch with the idea that we’d add animals and a small petting zoo. Each season we’ve added new animals, some purchased…and some born here. Now we’re open 3 seasons a year with reservations! We’ll host our 2022 pumpkin patch this fall, but until then come enjoy the summer activities.
If you recall, this area was traditionally the Donald Catrow dairy farm. We purchased the farm about 25 years ago as Mr. Catrow was retiring, and have used it for cattle, horses, and finally bison. Mark Orr wanted to purchase a small herd of bison in the early 2000s. We grew our herd from 6 bison to about 25 when we decided to exit the bison business. We occasionally get questions about where they went. It was a family decision to sell the herd due to the dangerous nature of the animals. We knew that if we wanted to host children and small farm animals at that location, the bison would have to be sold to another owner. Luckily for us, we found a buyer who took the whole herd as a group. This allowed the animals to stay together and head to a new home.
We host roughly 30,000 people per year at The Barnyard at Orr’s. The peak season is from September through October because our busy pumpkin patch and corn maze. During the spring and summer months, you can still visit Monday-Saturday from 9-5, and see any of our furry friends up close. It’s especially fun to watch the baby animals arrive. So far our residents are: 1 cow, 2 emu, 2 alpacas, 4 donkeys, 6 mini horses, 7 sheep, 9 rabbits, 10 fancy chickens, 15 ducks, 15 peacocks, 25 goats, and 75 chickens. These are our pets and they all have names. Most are located in The Barnyard area, although, 1 emu and the 2 alpacas are located at the end of Orr Drive in their own pasture.
Have you had farm-fresh eggs? What about farm-fresh duck eggs? We sell both at Orr’s Farm Market, hand-collected daily from our farm. We get roughly 5 dozen chicken eggs/day, and about a dozen duck eggs/day. If you pick up a pack of duck eggs, it’s good to know that while they have been cleaned, they still may appear dirty. No worries, it’s just the natural color of the shell.
One of our favorite attractions is our Farmer Fun Playground, which was added in 2021. We brought it in from New Jersey and had it installed in the spring of that year. It has 3 slides, 2 rock climbing walls, and lots of other things to keep your littles entertained. This is probably the biggest hit at our barnyard, aside from, of course, the animals.
Another feature of our Barnyard package is the scenic hayride down and back. People come from miles away to enjoy the fresh air and rolling West Virginia views. It’s about a 10-15 minute ride through our orchard in each direction.
If you’ve been to The Barnyard at Orr’s before, you know we have a “Snack Shack.” New this season, we’ll be selling Hershey’s novelty ice cream. What better treat on a hot, sunny day, than an ice cream bar??? You can also head up to the farm market and get one of our flavors of frozen slushies. We try to change out our slushy flavors every few weeks to make it exciting for you!
We hope you and your family visit us this summer at The Barnyard at Orr’s. You will make so many special memories, that you will be sure to cherish for years to come. Book your reservation today.
