Located less than an hour southeast of downtown Nashville, animal-rescue outpost The Gentle Barn is home to an array of special critters, many of whom were rescued from situations of abuse or neglect. The Christiana, Tenn., grounds are open to visitors on Sundays ($20 for adults, $10 for kids ages 2 to 12), meaning you and your brood can rub shoulders with Lolli the disabled goat, say howdy to Luke Skywalker the turkey, and give tummy scratches to big, beautiful Henry the pig, an absolute unit. The Gentle Barn also offers a variety of private tours and field-trip programming — see gentlebarn.org for details.
