yellow river game ranch

I used to visit the Game Ranch many times in the late 80's and early 90's when i was a child. So now that I have two little ones of my own I could not wait to take them here since I had so many wonderful memories. This place has changed so much. The deer no longer roam free throughout the ranch. Now, they are enclosed in a fence. The bear exhibit is still the same but very poor living conditions for the bears. I couldn't believe how many exhibits were empty. For a stretch of the trail every cage we walked up to was empty. The rabbit exhibit had six rabbits in there and only two of them were out of the shed they have for them to stay in. This place has really went down hill. If you have never been here it may be neat to visit but if you visited this place in the 80's and 90's you will be very sad at what this place is like now.

I went with my 3-year old granddaughter on Wednesday January 28th 2015 at around 11:00.TWO PROS: #1 Lots of animals just roam around the walking trail. #2 You can feed most of the animals who roam and who are in the cages and enclosures.LOTS OF CONS: All of the cages are rusted, and the grounds are very depressing.None of the grounds staff was friendly. We walked past at least 5 "caretakers and groundskeepers" and not one of them spoke. They have heavy machinery right near some of the enclosures, which made it feel like we were walking through a construction area. As a whole, the animals looked dirty and anxious. My granddaughter is a tiny and newly turned 3-year old. The girl at the register charged full adult price without even asking her age.SUMMARY: Since my granddaughter is only 3, she did not understand the poor conditions. She really enjoyed feeding the animals and the trail. I left depressed.

What isn't there to like about a shaded, winding mile path through deer, chickens, friendly squirrels, fat pigs, donkeys, goats, and the like? This is a kid's paradise. Bring lettuce, crackers, and a $1 bag of dry peanuts and everyone will be your best friend.

This place should be shut down, animals look poorly cared for, staff were either extras in dusk till dawn or off deliverance. It is just wrong, we are regular visitors to Atlanta and have been here once and will never go again. Don't go here, please just don't, if you go and look then use the washroom first before you pay, that should be enough for you to high tail it out of there,mind you if you do go in and are lucky enough to find a peacock feather you get charged for it on the way out. Another sign staes, "do not feed me as if I bite, I get killed" really!

I can't believe this place is still allowed to be open. It's very delapidated, grotty and shabby and the enclosures for the Bears, Bobcats , foxes, coyotes and some of the other wild animals would look at home in a third world zoo as they are nothing more than concrete cages; small and depressing. Some of the animals look poorly kept; it takes more than just feeding an animal to maintain its welfare. While my 14 month daughter enjoyed feeding a few of the animals, I'm glad she was too young to see what bad conditions they lived in. It's such a shame as it could be a great place ( it sounds as if it was in the past) but I would not recommend it. I'm sure there are better places where children can enjoy seeing and interacting with animals.

Having gone there many time in the 1980's and the last time 5 years ago it's definitely not the place it used to be. That being said, it was a fun place to take my granddaughter. It's very rustic. The price was right, $15 for both of us and with taking our time and a visit to the playground afterwards we had an enjoyable 1 1/2 hours.Pros:*Great for young children. In my opinion, 10 and under*Reasonable priced.*Get to get close & feed deer, goats, ducks, chickens, roosters, pot bellied pigs plus more*There were also bears, buffalo, peacocks, bunnies, red fox, coyotes, small horses plus more *An easy drive*They have plenty of hand sanitizer areasCons:*Maintenance is not up to par*Too many empty cages*In this day & age it was sad to see some of the animals in cages w/o anything for stimulation. They were bored in the same ways Zoos were before they started to change in the late 1970's*Playground is not real safe for very small childrenI missed when they had deer running loose and what seemed like 100's of bunnies that the kids used to be able to pet. This changed because of the State of Georgia deeming that it wasn't safe.They could raise their prices to help pay for some of the much needed repair but they haven't & it's one of the few affordable places in the area where you can have a fun kids outing.

I have been going to the Yellow River Game Ranch my entire life. I have taken the kids here multiple times. Daycares around also bring the classes here. You can feed the animals and pet them. There are chipmunks that let you feed them throughout the wooded ranch. Deer will come right up to you and let you feed them out of your hand. My kids loved it.

Sad about the run down state we saw at what was once such a kid friendly place. The animals were hungry, lying or sitting in unsanitary conditions, and their water was filthy or non existent. Our group felt so badly for the animals. I hope someone who can take care of this situation sees these reviews and can help facilitate change for these animals, especially the bears, deer in respiratory distress, and others to name a few. I recommend some ground covers planting for more healthy eating for many if the animals in the park. Many animals were in cages that had "under vet care" signs on the doors and many more should have had them.

First let me start with the good stuff. The animals are very friendly and my granddaughter had so much fun feeding them. It's not often that a peacock will eat out of your hand. The shade trees provide shelter from the blazing summer heat and it was a relaxing walk through the park. You can bring your own food to feed the animals or buy it there. If you buy it there it's pricey.There were plenty of hand washing stations although they were a bit grotty. Now for the down side. Considering the cost (we paid almost $25.00 for 2 grandparents and one little one) and we brought food for the animals, I felt the park in general was in sad disrepair. Many cages had been abandoned and were over grown. This is a rustic place so there is nothing fancy to maintain.I felt sad for some of the animals who had nothing to climb on or play with in their cages. Just a bowl for water. It seems like there is more that could have been done to clean up the place.

We absolutely loved the Peacock chasing the Rooster! Bring the kids or don't it is a fun and inexpensive experience.

I took my granddaughter and daughter to the facility. My daughter had been there many times growing up. It was a fun day as she recollected memories to her daughter about what it was like when she went as a child. They both enjoyed feeding the animals and seeing them up close. You can buy treats there to feed them or bring some from home. Suggestions include cereal, carrots, greens and graham crackers.

If you love animals; this is the place to go. We've visited this game ranch many times. We went this past Sunday for my grandsons birthday. His choice. The place has been forced to pen the deer who used to roam free. Absolutely unfair to game ranch. The animals roaming free never hurt anyone. They would come to you to be fed and petted. But, it's still a lot of fun to visit. So please visit this game ranch and help support these wonderful animals.

I took my granddaughter and little great granddaughter to this place yesterday. While the overall condition of it was run down, the condition of most of the animals was appalling. One of the bears was laying against the bars of the cage barely breathing and not at all responsive. Poor thing was either dead or nearly dead. The "reassuring" sign on the cage said " Under Vet Care". One of the donkeys has a massive mass on its neck, one of the peacocks was limping badly. One little pig was very skinny, and unable to walk on crippled legs. A baby goat was outside the "nursery" enclosure, looking lost and just wandering around. We saw foxes and cats in concrete and barred cages with nothing for them to do except sleep curled up or cry while pacing back and forth in front of the bars. These animals are clearly spending their lives in terrible, cruel and unnatural conditions. Why the state allows this operation to continue and does nothing to rescue these poor animals is beyond me. To add to our visit, my 4 year old great granddaughter picked up a peacock feather on the trail, as we left, the lady at the ticket desk told her the feather wasn't free and if she wanted it, she had to pay a dollar. We made the child leave it behind. I intend to contact the Gwinnett County animal control, newspaper and PETA to try to get all these animals rescued.All the chipmonks, squirrels and rats however, looked very healthy and well fed as they scampered through the park.

Another animal rescue for animals where you can feed and pet all the animals. From deer to bears, turkey's and a lot more. A definite family pleaser..

The Game Ranch has really gone down hill since I was a kid but my son (2 years old) still loved it. Please continue going to visit these animals. They need your support. The laws have changed and the deer no longer roam free but you still get to hand feed through a fence. The squirrels eat out of your hand and there are goats, sheep, pigs, donkeys, etc. I'm sure with continued support or any donations, this little gem could come back to life and be the fun place we all remember as kids.