Desaru Ostrich Farm For My Pengerang Trip @ Johor, Malaysia

One of the highlights, besides food, for my recent pengerang trip was a visit to Desaru Ostrich Farm. *note: Pengerang is pretty near to Desaru*

To tempt you to purchase a ticket to enter the farm, a day-old ostrich chick was placed prominently at the counter. Short-sighted visitors, like my cousin *ahem* meixin *cough*, might mistaken it for a garden hedgehog!

At RM12, the entrance fee was a bit steep but since we had travelled so far, we might as well check it out. Worse come to worse, it will serve as useful information for readers who chanced upon this blog.

The entrance. Yes, a point of entry that should have been a lot more elaborated and decorative. Guess Singaporeans are too accustomed to having a good impression in everything.

An information giving session was ongoing when we stepped in. However, the man was more keen in selling his ostrich essence than telling us more about ostriches. It was only later that i realised we arrived nearing the end of his presentation.

To give you a rough feel on the size of this ostrich farm, please look at the above picture. I was standing right in the middle and could count approximately 200 to 300 adult ostriches in this farm.

Besides ostriches, there are other animals residing in the farm. This aggressive monkey/baboon was caged up in a small metal enclosure and i could not blame him for having a personality problem.

Polish chickens are another permanent fixture. I like chicken; especially those deep fried ones.

It is appropriate to feature the Southern Cassowary since the species is related to ostrich and could not fly too (known categorically as ratite).

Coming to the main star of the post; the largest living bird in the whole world.

Maybe we should start with something more adorable; ostrich chicks! These were less than a week old and have to be kept separately as their immune system was still weak.

These covered pens were for older chicks. Due to their comparatively diminutive size, they were less threatening and scary when they approached us. Their painless bite was also quite amusing.

Although most adult ostriches are fenced up, there were around three to four privileged ones that freely roamed the compound.

The fence is not restrictive for viewing and is merely a barrier to prevent the ostriches from escaping.

Obviously, visitors are sill apprehensive and prefer to stand a meter away the fence. According to wikipedia, ostriches are "capable of killing enemies as large as lions" in self defence.

How could i talk about ostrich without showing their eggs; known as the largest of all eggs!

Every egg is strong enough for a human to stand on it although it is still as fragile as any chicken egg if you happen to drop it. I was really tempted to try if not for the price tag of RM 60 for each egg.

Skin problem? That's the question everyone asks when they see an ostrich with more than half its feathers gone. Correct answer: molting! By the way, this particular bird was pecking at pebbles on the ground; an action required to grind food in their gizzards.

As the weather was quite hot, most ostriches sought refuge under the shade.

Any reputable Encyclopedia will tell you that ostrich legs are dangerous. Add their hooves into the picture and you would realise how menacing looking the lower part of an ostrich is.

Upper body is cute though. And you can buy bunches of vegetables to entice them over for pictures taking and personal 'touch'.

Okay, another photograph before we get out. Honestly, an hour would be sufficient for this farm visit and you may give yourself another 30 minutes should you want to have ostrich delicacies (which i would blog on a later date).

Behind the ticketing counter (which is actually just a table) is a shop selling mostly ostrich related products, like ostrich skin wallets, handbags, dried ostrich meat, ostrich egg decorations (like the above) etc.

Not your usual egg decorations though; the egg shells project a really beautiful radiance with light bulbs.

For ladies who wish to protect their 'assets', ostrich eggs may just be the right material. Various sizes are available for sale.

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Location

S-9, Kampung Simon 81620,

Teluk Ramunia, Johor, Malaysia

Opening Hours

10am to 6pm

Additional Information

Most tour packages to Desaru will include a trip to this ostrich farm. Check it out with your preferred travel agent.