Meet Ollie and Chloe, our dobermans; Jesse, our Scottish terrier; and Mia, our Burmese cat.

Jesse loves to zingela, which in Zulu means to roam free, sniffing here and there amongst the bushes, hunting for insects and chasing whatever takes her fancy! And she has found her way out of the security of the enclosure. As you can see in the video, being an almost accomplished fence climber, she has a ready way of escape… She is also quick to make friends with our guests and even sometimes accompanies them on their walks, drives and rides across the farm. Even into the boat or the water… Lately she has also, in the sly, mastered the trick of fetching a fresh egg from the hen’s nest and carrying it in her mouth without crushing it! Naughty, clever girl.

Ollie and Chloe, as well as Jesse, love long walks or runs alongside the bakkie. Not even deep puddles after heavy rain deter them; oh no, it’s a cause of more fun and excitement! Interaction with the farm animals is another favourite, although only allowed under supervision, because some of the animals feel threatened and might try to protect themselves or their young against what they perceive as “predators”. It took more than a year to teach Ollie and Chloe, who were raised in a city, to not chase or catch the sheep while being supervised! It must sometimes be hard though to stay within the boundaries when you see all the animals ambling past.

Mia is a real lady of the manor. She and the dogs are great friends and often snuggle together. Then again, Mia loves to snuggle and has many places to cuddle up – a blanket on the sofa, on a human’s lap, inside the tumble dryer, or with the dogs.

As you can see, we absolutely love animals and really understand that people do not want to leave their pets at home. But for their own safety’s sake and our farm animals’ protection, and for the peace of mind of our guests as well as our own, we had to make the tough decision to not allow guests to bring their pets along to the farm.