Biomes Marine Biology Center — Attraction in North Kingstown

This is the first and last time we will be visiting Biomes. First impressions were amazing, we were having fun, additional families started to come in and enjoy what they had to offer, and then my 18 month old son started to cry uncontrollably. My wife and I did everything in our power to try to calm him down whilst trying to keep our 7 and 11 year old entertained. After some time, we did eventually accomplish to quiet him down. I was then approached by an employee who stated that they had received complains from other families that my 18 month old son’s crying and screaming were too much and suggested I bring him outside tonight “calm him down”. The employee didn’t want to be “that guy” but they were. I informed my wife of the situation and brought our son outside. My wife tried to keep the other kids inside and entertained however, the damage was done and she followed suit behind me after about 5 minutes. After we got the kids in the car I went back in to speak with the staff about how we were treated unfairly and asked for a refund. We weren’t even there an hour at this point. The employee (who was the same employee that suggested I take my son outside) did not seem incredibly considerate and suggested initially that I can wait for a call from the manager. I requested the manager immediately as I was visibly upset. The manager came and did do the right thing and refund us for the visit. The manager stated “it’s very awkward and uncomfortable for us to have even spoke to you about this matter”. If it was so uncomfortable, then why bring it up, if you’re a family friendly facility? We paid just as much to be there as the other family. I don’t understand why we were asked to take him out in the first place. Prior to my son’s meltdown, a child approached my older kid while they were playing with legos making a boat with them. The kid took the Lego boat and smashed it to smithereens and screamed as his parents picked him up. We didn’t complain. Kids...

Absolutely deplorable conditions for the ferret at this aquarium. I’m not sure why there even is a ferret at an aquarium. (He was sleeping in the dirty towel) We demanded explanation and it was brushed off, I even offered to adopt this poor baby. They said no, he will live there until he dies.

Ferrets require 4-6+ hours out of cage time every single day, should rarely be kept solo and require MUCH more enrichment inside their cage (better yet, not kept as a caged pet at all). Even the rodent bottle provided for this ferret is not appropriate for ferrets, bottles chip teeth and are difficult for a ferret to get enough water they need.

This ferret has been kept like this for years. I’m a seasoned ferret owner and understand not all can adhere to my standards but this is without a doubt the worst conditions I have seen for a ferret in my years of rescuing ferrets.

I regret paying for this experience and please- if you care about animals do not support this establishment.

EDIT: because I can’t figure out how to reply to the owner’s reply. I simply wrote this review (as I am entitled to) and notified the local ferret rescue so they were aware. That’s it. I didn’t tell people to write additional reviews, didn’t post to ferret groups etc. People did so on their own accord. Regardless, the owner’s dismissive and combative demeanor to genuine concerns is alarming. I feel for all the animals under his care. As an animal care professional with over 16 years under her belt, I’m ashamed of the example this establishment sets for the younger...

I’d like to start my review off by saying it is a very adorable, fun, and clean place for children to be exposed to some marine life. It’s very enjoyable, however there were a couple of things that didn’t sit too well with me. Firstly, when we arrived on Saturday 7/16 around 12 PM, there was an older woman who was at the front desk checking people in and selling admission tickets, and she had literally 0 patience for us. Instead, she seemed bothered that we were there and trying to fish our credit card out of our purse to pay. She didn’t give us any information in the place and didn’t tell us any rules. She literally just stared as us and sold us tickets. The second girl we saw as we were leaving, a younger one, was absolutely sweet and personable, and I heard her go over the rules to patrons that were just arriving. I wish I had her greet us and not the other woman who made me and my family feel like a nuisance while celebrating my nephews birthday, my nephew who is on the spectrum by the way (which is why we were having a hard time getting our cards out of our purse because he was so excited he was pulling us in.)

Secondly, I noticed that the bearded dragon’s enclosure was not up to standards for a bearded dragon. There was no thermometer in the tank, and the tank did not feel warm. There was also a red lightbulb over the dragon, which does nothing but cause stress to the dragon. The substrate was also not very clean, and it was pretty smelly. He appeared healthy, so I’m glad to see that, but he could be thriving if he had...