Family Fun at Fair Oaks Farms

Our family recently had the pleasure of visiting Fair Oaks Farms in Fair Oaks, IN. Located in Northwest Indiana, it is a reasonable road trip from Chicago or Indianapolis(see their website to find out how close they are to you).   It was a great day of learning, togetherness and some amazing treats. Everyone is still talking about what they learned there and the awesomeness of approximately 30,000 dairy cows all in one place.

We began inside their beautiful barn to see all the things bovine.  We started off with facts about how much cows eat and learned that each cow produces about 10 gallons of milk! The exhibits were very interactive and state of the art.  It was quite apparent that extreme care had been taken to make sure each exhibit was the best it could be.  Nutrition was a major factor in the whole experience and as a Mom I appreciate any information my children gain in that area.

We headed over to the dairy in a comfortable air conditioned cow themed bus with about 30 other passengers as we began to learn about a day of activity at Fair Oaks Farms.  They showed us how they make the feed for the cows and all the care that goes into making sure the herd is happy, comfortable and healthy.

After visiting each of the huge, clean living areas, we headed in to the milking parlor.   Our tour bus delivered us conveniently a few steps from the nucleus of the farm.  We were taken aback by the amazingness of it all!! Everything was immaculate and we were surprised that it didn’t even smell like any farm animals lived there.  Our educated tour guide told us all about the processes and steps taken to milk the cows. She informed us the cows take an eight minute ride and that the dairy runs 24 hours a day! WOW!

Upon our return, we were notified that a calf was about to be born. We walked into the birthing barn and were delighted to see that a mother cow had just delivered literally seconds before we entered. Another mother was just about to have her calf, so we took a seat in their comfortable theater to witness the miracle.  The second cow needed a little assistance and a Fair Oaks employee gave her the care that she needed.  We got to see a new calf come into the world and the whole room quietly cheered her success!

We  took a break with a delicious strawberry shake from their on site facility.  While the adults relaxed, the children ran wildly around the farms fabulous outdoor play equipment and we finished up a wonderfully tiring, exciting, educational day of MOOvelous activity with an souvenir pose atop a cow statue.  Be sure to make time to spend a whole day at the farm as there is so much to see and do.  Please visit the Fair Oaks Farms website for more information including admission, hours and directions at www.fofarms.com .

I hope you enjoyed this post about our excellent day trip to Fair Oaks Farms. Thank you for visiting with us!

Disclosure:   It is not sponsored or endorsed by Fair Oaks Farm or any of its affiliates.   It was shared in an effort to provide educational family travel ideas in the Michiana area.  All opinions are 100% mine. For additional information please see our policies page for more about our disclosure policy.