Lagoon Deer Park

About Lagoon Deer Park

Lagoon Deer Park is a walk-through petting zoo and fishing park on Martins Point Road in Sandusky, Ohio 44870. According to the park's petting zoo page, visitors can stroll among over 200 animals and meet animals from around the world. It also has four fishing ponds. The park is not an AZA-accredited facility.

The park's directions page gives routes from Cedar Point, Toledo, Cleveland and Columbus. From Cedar Point, the directions run south on Cedar Point Drive, then along 1st Street and East Monroe Street, and then via US-6 to OH-269. From Toledo and Cleveland the directions use State Route 2 to the Bay View exit onto OH-269 South. From Columbus they use State Route 23 North to OH-4 North and then OH-269 North. The home page notes that there is a lot of construction in the surrounding area and advises visitors to check their maps.

Exhibits and habitats

The park's animals are in a walk-through setting. According to the petting zoo page, guests are greeted by a handful of deer as they enter, and food can be purchased on arrival to feed all of the animals. The page lists six breeds of deer, llamas, goats, sheep, elk, peacocks, emus, rheas, miniature donkeys and Scottish Highlander cattle, and says the park suits people of all ages. The home page says visitors feed the animals by hand and that the animals come from Europe, Japan, Asia, South and North America and Africa.

Animals with their own pages on the park's website include Scottish Highlander cattle, Abyssinian donkey, North American elk, fallow deer, sika deer, four-horned Jacob's sheep, pygmy goats, Barbados sheep, llama, emu and aoudad. Several of those pages describe the animals as follows.

• North American elk: the park's page says the animal is found in its native habitat around the Rocky Mountains and similar ranges in western North America, eats grass, twigs and berries, and has antlers that can span up to 6 feet high and weigh over 30 pounds.
• Scottish Highlander: the page says the cattle originated in the Scottish Highlands, have two coats of fur with an outer coat that can grow longer than a foot, and have been known to use their horns to uncover food on snow-covered ground.
• Aoudad: the page says the animal is also known as Barbary sheep, comes from the mountainous areas of northern Africa, and is agile at jumping and climbing steep inclines.

Conservation and programs

The park's programs are fishing and organized group visits.

The fishing page says no state fishing license is needed, and visitors should bring their own poles and bait. Flat-bottom boats are permitted but gas engines are not, and night fishing is available on Friday and Saturday nights. The park lists four ponds where anglers can fish from the shore or reach the middle of the ponds by boat. Fish listed are rainbows, bullheads, channel catfish, white bass, carp, largemouth bass, rock bass, bluegill, crappies, perch, muskies and northern pike. The home page says some species are brought in regularly while others are propagated on the property, and describes the fishing as suited to junior anglers.

Organized groups, as defined on the groups page, are recognized organizations of any size such as scouts, nursing home facilities and church groups, and large family or friend gatherings do not count as organized groups. The page lists picnic tables, sharable buckets, bus parking and bathrooms as amenities for groups, and groups complete a form under the More Information tab.

The home page also describes a gift shop with Cherokee handcrafts, souvenirs, collectibles, jewelry and sportswear.

Planning your visit

As listed on the park's website, hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., with the last visitors admitted at 7 p.m. Ticket prices are on the park's Prices page.

The home page says cash and credit are the only forms of payment accepted. Visitors may not bring their own food for the animals. Only small snacks are sold at the park, picnic tables are outside the petting zoo, and parking is free according to the park's website.

The park is on Instagram as LagoonDeerPark and links to a Facebook page from its website.