Caversham wildlife park, Perth

Get closer; a lil bit closer. Ok, that's enough.

You see, we were not allowed to touch the cuddly lil Koala. When I visited Australia previously, we were allowed to hold the koalas for photo-taking. But one has to be careful as their claws are pretty sharp and thus, you could get a nasty gash.

But still, I'm happy that my daughter had the opportunity to see the Koalas up close.

The bulk of the money you'll pay to enter Caversham is to fund this farm show, as so I believe.

Just warming the seats for just a couple of minutes, I was invited on stage to try swinging the billy. That is to swing a can filled with tea in the 360 degree motion - over your head and back down again. I thought the guy was kidding me, but I did it. Yeah.

Other shows include the cracking of whip, feeding of lambs and also, a sheep shearing demonstration. The way they shear the sheep is so totally impressive as once the shearing was done, the host lifted up the entire wool, showing us that it was in one piece! True masterpiece of a good sheep shearer.

The children also had the opportunity to milk the cow. What a treat.

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My children and I came to Australia to see their native animals, and we were not disappointed. There were masked owls, wombats, lorikeets, and many more. One of the biggest kick for the children was that they were able to come face-to-face with the kangaroos, and my, were there alot of kangaroos.

These marsupials were given the area to roam and there are bins of dry food conveniently located at different part of the kangaroo enclosure for tourists to feed them. Truthfully, they were all so overfed!

As these kangaroos have been domesticated, they are rather friendly and would not move an inch when you're taking a picture with it. Still, respect these animals. Do note, wild kangaroos are not so people-friendly and their hindlegs pack a punch. So be careful when you approach them, domesticated or not.

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Caversham Wildlife Park is, besides the Zoo, the second option in Perth to see a wide variety of Aussie animals. You can get close to them, enter some enclosures, feed the kangaroos, touch a koala's fur, have your photo taken with an animal. The star of the show is Big Bubs the Wombat - I was even allowed to hold her myself because the park was not very busy that day - usually she stays in the keeper's lap. In addition to the Aussie species the park also has domestic animals.

Compared to Perth Zoo, Caversham is the better choice for families with kids and generally people who want to interact with the animals, feed and pat them. People who prefer observing animals in their natural habitat and behaviour to treating them as pets will feel happier at Perth Zoo.

The disadvantage of Caversham Wildlife Park is its location far out of the city in Whiteman Park - you need a car, getting there by public transport is difficult.

More animal photos on my travelogue page

If you want to get up close and personal with a kangaroo or koala then Caversham Wildlife Park is the place to go. Caversham Wildlife Park is in our famous Swan Valley. You can book day tours through the Perth Information Centre or hire a car and visit it for yourselves. Caversham is part of Whiteman Park which is a lovely way to experience the Australian bush.
Caversham Park

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At last, I finally got a chance to touch this cute animal. Its soooooooooooooo pretty and the fur so soft!

A tip from the caretaker, carress them with the back of your hand not with your palm as our palm maybe oily which can take away the moisture that keep them warm....

Errrr...I actually 4got the real reason. But I'm pretty sure up to the word moisture though :P

Ohhh...and another jackpot, we got to meet the little baby too....


Note: Pics courtesy of Haris

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Also at Caversham, do check out the details on the timing for a date with Holly the wombat.

We were passing the stage area when we saw the next 'date' is at 1.30 pm so we got into the que and get a picture of ourself with the wombat.

Note: Pics courtesy of Haris

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Talking about Australia, the 1st thing that came to my mind is kangaroo..then koala and I just learnt about wombat when we visited Perth Zoo.

Caversham Wildlife Park was mentioned in most if not all Perth/ Western Australia tourist guide books, phamplets and websites. Getting excited about the possibility of getting closer to those 3 animals we found our way to the park on 28 March 2007.

Again we take a ride on Transperth bus No. 60 from Barrack St. Stand No. 2 to Morley station then hop on bus number 336 to Whiteman Park.

The management of Whiteman Park is thoughtful enough to provide a courtesy ride into the park for those arriving with public transport like us since the entrance to the Caversham Wildlife Park is about 1.8km from the main entrance.

AUD16 is charged as an entrance fee for 1 adult. They provide u a map as a guide to go around the park.

It was a memorable experience. I think the most well fed kangaroo in Western Ausralia if not in the whole Australia is at Caversham. Some of the kangaroos just ignore the food in our hands but some are really sporting! Lots of mother-2b kangaroo are around as well mother with baby roo in pouch!

One thing for sure, just be alert to your surrounding if during your visit its the roo mating season coz we did see a couple in action in broad day light!!!!

Note: Pics courtesy of Haris