Purina Farms050

The Purina Farms Visitor's Center is home to a Pet Center - a full-size barn containing domestic farm animals - a theater, and informational center. Demonstrations, dog obedience shows, and hands-on petting areas attract nearly 200,000 visitors a year.

The big draw for families is the Barn and Play Area, where visitors can interact with a variety of domestic animals found on a typical working farm, romp in the Barn's hayloft, swing on a rope, or milk a cow.

The two-story barn houses sheep, horses, cows, pigs, rabbits, chickens, and other barnyard animals. A petting ring in the barn's nursery area allows children to get up-close and personal with baby bunnies, chicks, and piglets. Milking demonstrations are held throughout the day.

An enclosed area next to the barn features scheduled performances of herding dogs, demonstrating their expertise at corralling farm animals.

The Pet Center is home to dozens of dogs and cats, and the key attraction is a 20-foot-tall, multi-level cat house, complete with windows, stairways, and rocking chairs. A staircase surrounding the structure provides visitors with an eye-level view of the cat house's inhabitants.

Don't miss (or, if you're sensitive, DO miss) the unique display that lets visitors experience the scents that a dog's nose perceives while walking through a field. It's very - possibly too - revealing!