A Day with the Wild Ones

 North Island Wildlife Recovery Association (NIWRA) is a ten minute drive away from me and one of my favourite places to spend an afternoon in nature when I have no hiking buddy available.  NIWRA is both a rehabilitation and release centre, and a permanent sanctuary for those that cannot be released. 

One of the permanent residents there is Sandor.  He is a bald eagle who obtained a serious wing injury when hit by a vehicle and cannot fly.  He has been glove-trained and is part of NIWRA's Education Program.  

As I'm still struggling with camera and photo-editing problems, I just took along a little old backup camera I bought from a pawn shop a while back - a Canon PowerShot SX210 IS.  It did the job admirably, its light weight and small lens enabling me to catch a sharp image standing two feet from the enclosure and carefully lining up the focal point to avoid the wires of the pens for those critters without an unobstructed view - that is, when the animals cooperated by standing still at just the right spot. Sandor, the eagle mentioned above, did just that.  The Wild Turkeys did not. 

The wild turkeys were very friendly and talkative, and whenever I squatted down to get a photo, they came running up to the fence, gobble gobble, gobble, to say hello.  Hence the wire in the photo. 

I did get one, however - not as crisp a shot, but I love the fine little 'hairs' sticking out of his head and the layers of dark feathers on his chest.  

Next to the wild turkey pen were some Silkies. While they are a domesticated chicken as far as I know, I do recall that NIWRA decided to take them in for a very specific role - I think to provide eggs to help meet the dietary needs of some of the wild residents?  Regardless, I love to visit them and I call them 'bedroom slipper chickens' because of their ridiculously fluffy feathered five-toed feet.  Like the turkeys, they were overly friendly and active, so the only shot I got was this floofy girl shaking her pompadour and hiding her feet. But I like the shot anyway. 

The owls always fascinate me.  My favourite is Elsa, a snowy owl who I swear has the sweetest smile, but she declined to be photographed today.  Farley is a close runner up, a Great Gray Owl who looks directly at me and doesn't mind the camera. Farley was hit by a car and has irreparable wing damage so cannot fly. His enclosure has a nice open, unwired spot that facilitates a clear view.

The enclosures for the permanent residents are generously sized and designed with as much natural habitat as possible.  While I didn't photograph Raye and Knut, the bears, today I did watch them lumber around their huge grounds with its dens and brambles and logs and water sources.  They were having lots of fun playing together but two barriers of small-spaced wires made getting a shot difficult. 

The ravens have more toys and enrichment activities than most five year olds.  Trickster was playing vigorously with a long dangling rope to which a bell was attached, and either Ralph or Lonan was persistently tapping away on what looked like one of those dog puzzles that lets out a reward for opening the right flap.  He lifted a flap with his claw, then stuck his beak in a small square on the other side.  When that proved unsuccessful, he lifted the handle in his beak and hopped-flew around the enclosure carrying it to another corner like a kid with a basket of Easter eggs.  It was hard to capture a clear photo of him, but he provided me with a good 20 minutes of entertainment and, like most ravens, plenty of conversation too. 

I also love that NIWRA includes information boards on each of the permanent residents which tells not only about their species but also why they are a permanent resident.   Too often it is because of human interference, where humans have taken a young one from the wilds as a pet and it can not fend for itself.  The raven above (or possibly his enclosure-mate)  was raised in captivity and never learned to find food on its own. 

Information boards also give visitors advice on what to do when encountering animals in the wild, such as young animals that appear to have been abandoned by their parent or orphaned.

I walked through the short trails at the back, where plant and tree species are clearly identified, and checked out the enclosed garden and pond for signs of the frogs or lizards I've seen there on other occasions. I wandered on to see the ducks at the Quack Shack - they always give me great pleasure, especially the runner ducks with their upright, penguin-like waddle. 

I said hi to many of the other birds, like owls Eyegone and Oneeye (shouldn't be hard for you to guess why they live there),  or Elvis, the Swainson's Hawk who someone took from the wild and tried to raise as a pet until a neighbour reported it to the authorities after seeing him tied to a rail.  He had already imprinted on humans and never learned to hunt. Yuki and Baylis, the Great Horned Owls, blinked at me from a perch at the back of their enclosure.  Wobbles held sentry near the eagle flight building where eagles to be released  practice their flight and hunting skills,  visible to humans only through narrow slits on the second-story landing.  I spend a few minutes watching the three cubs visible only through closed circuit video, who will also be released when big enough to fend for themselves. The recovery, rehabilitation and release part of the centre's mandate is dear to my heart - it's wonderful to visit with the permanent residents, but such a thrill to know help is there for those who will be able to survive on their own. 

I said hello to Boris, Vladimar, Igor and Anastasia, the turkey vultures who were shot in their wings and cannot fly.  They decided to play shy, but it's hard to hide with that colourful head.

And my favourite place to photograph - the turtle pond.  It frequently attracts wild ducks and geese, like the Canada Geese floating on it yesterday.  

The native Western Painted Turtles didn't make an appearance (they may still be wintering way down in the mud) but several Red Sliders (bought by people as pets and then dumped) were enjoying some sun bathing (cloud bathing? It was overcast) on the logs near the water's edge.

My annual membership fee has already paid for itself   - not just financially (this being my third visit this year) but in the enjoyment and entertainment it provides on an otherwise lazy afternoon. 

A combination of rescue/rehabilitation of wild animals, life-time sanctuary for those that cannot be rehabilitated, and education centre - all in a setting of trails, gardens, interesting rock and root features, and ponds - it appeals to all my senses and on a weekday afternoon during covid is a quiet and safe place to be.  

A Sanctuary is Not a Petting Zoo!

As warmer weather approaches, sanctuaries that provide a permanent refuge for rescued farm animals are inundated with requests from people wishing to bring their young animal-loving children for a visit. Many envision taking their wide-eyed, excited child into a pen of loving, friendly animals who will let themselves be endlessly petted and cuddled and hand fed. This is, after all, the image they have seen in advertisements for commercial petting zoos. But a sanctuary is not a petting zoo. 

According to the Oxford Dictionary, a sanctuary is a place of “refuge or safety from pursuit, persecution, or other danger”, and “a place where injured or unwanted animals of a specified kind are cared for”. 

A petting zoo, on the other hand, usually buys young adult animals in the late winter or early spring, often from questionable sources with little regard to genetics or potential health issues. Then the petting zoo breeds them, puts them on display almost immediately, and lets excited kids with grabby hands stress both the babes and the mamas. Visitors are usually allowed – or encouraged – to feed them as well, regardless of how much the animals may have already eaten that day. Often the babes will be weaned and separated from the mother at the earliest possible age, in hopes that a second birthing will be possible before the end of summer, ready for the popular harvest money-makers like hay rides and corn mazes and pumpkin patches. 

Pumpkin patch?  I wouldn't mind visiting a pumpkin patch! 

And when the season is over and the money is no longer rolling in? The animals at most petting zoos are then sent to slaughter or sold - after all, by next tourist season they will no longer be babies that draw in the crowds, and feeding adults or youngsters through the winter months in order to breed them in the spring costs money. It's cheaper to dispose of the animals and buy new breeders the next year.  

Does that sound like a sanctuary to you?

Don't be a turkey!  That ain't no sanctuary!

At animal sanctuaries such as RASTA (Rescue And Sanctuary for Threatened Animals) in nearby Chemainus, the animals are residents who will live out their lives at a place that treats them with dignity and respect. It is a place that will not exploit or sell them, that will not breed them, and it is a place that will provide them with a safe haven for life.  

Garfunkel:  I hear strangers nearby - let's circle the wagon!

Tango and Romeo:  Why?  Is there food in it? 

Most of the animals have arrived at the sanctuary after pretty horrible lives – passed from home to home, or abused, or abandoned, deprived of appropriate veterinary care, and/or confined without companionship of their own kind or others. Many have significant health issues that require special diets and medications. Their food intake is carefully managed, in both quality and quantity, to ensure their nutritional needs are being met appropriately. This is not to say they don’t get regular treats – they certainly do – but not every time someone walks nearby. 

Excuse us!  We're having a snack!

Because of their varied and unfortunate backgrounds, some might bite or shove humans, some might have poor eyesight that mistakes a child’s hand for a treat, some might not have the dexterity to ‘take gently’ when food is offered. Even the scent of an unfamiliar human can make some animals who are normally friendly and even playful with regular volunteers retreat and/or become anxious.   

Help! Help!    There's a stranger in our house!

Oops, sorry, was that your finger I just chomped?

See these horns?  I'm really a gentle giant but if a fly tickles my tummy
and I swing my big head around to shoo it, you better shoo too! 

To be sure, many sanctuaries do offer tours at set times and days, nearly always by appointment only.  At RASTA, these educational tours (which include a presentation on factory farming) are restricted to very small groups on only one or two days a week so every person can be closely supervised and so the animals are not overwhelmed. 

Because sanctuaries give as much freedom as possible to their animals by allowing them to roam around with their animal friends in pastures or extra large fenced pens, safety – for visitors as well as for the animals - can be a challenge. Sanctuary volunteers have to make sure all visitors stay together, ensure no one sticks out a hand to an animal that might mistake it for a carrot, see that no one gets knocked down or left behind or wanders off, no one leaves a gate open or drops an inedible item in a pen. There can be no lollygagging to send a selfie to your friends while your group moves on to the next pen!

Oooh, looky here.....someone left the door open!

A plastic bag!  I found a plastic bag in here!

On an educational tour, discussion about the animals’ backgrounds and about animal treatment in commercial industry is not always suitable for young ears and may even upset sensitive adults. It is not a 'cute-fuzzy-wuzzy-let’s-go-feed-and-pat-the-animals' experience, though you may be lucky enough to be there when some of the more social animals wish to interact with you. But the decision is up to the animals, not you, and if Sociable Suzie decides she’d rather have a nap buried in the soft straw in her shelter, then Sociable Suzie gets to do just that.

No, thank you.  Not today.

 ^What she said ^ 

If you wish to take your kids or grandkids to the local petting zoo this summer, that is your choice. If you think your children are old enough and mature enough to visit a sanctuary, by all means request (well in advance) an appointment for an educational tour. But please don’t expect the same experience at a sanctuary as at a petting zoo. 

This is the animals’ home. This is their sanctuary, their safe space, their forever home. This is not a petting zoo. 

And now you know. 

Happy Chinese New Year!

Today marks the start of the Year of the Rooster on the Chinese Lunar Calendar.  Bob, a resident at RASTA sanctuary, thinks he should be their poster boy.  Here's some of my favourite shots of him:

Hear ye! Hear ye!
Gong hei fat choy!

Bob doing his Celebration Dance

"So, when is the year of the turkey?"
"I don't think there is one."

"Really?  Year of the Turkey?  No comparison!" 

Goodbye 2016, Hello 2017

As I puttered around the house yesterday, putting away Christmas decorations and saying goodbye to yet another year, I listened to the radio as commentator after commentator remarked how glad they are to see the end of 2016, listing all the sadness that the year had brought -  deaths of stars, deaths from fentanyl, deaths from war and terrorism.  I find myself asking "Was this year really any worse than others, or was it just made to seem worse through the advances of social media?" I am so tired of depressing news.

Sigh.  I turned off the radio and put on some CDs - gentle music to soothe, lyrical music I can sing with, rousing music to lift the spirits.

For me, 2016 was a good year.  Oh sure, my body feels ten years older with ten times the aches and pains, especially since tearing my meniscus this summer.  And I worry about money as costs keep rising. And I could have done without both the washer AND the printer needing repairs right at Christmastime.   And I often miss the family and friends of Christmases past.

But all-in-all, it was a good year.  On December 31, 2015, I wrote that I hoped my 2016 would include "more time with animals, more hikes, more photography, more time with family and friends."

And it did.

I spent lots of time with animals.  Lots and lots of time with lots and lots of animals - here's just a few of them:

Farm animals at RASTA and Hearts on Noses

The Little Dog Walking Group
(and Chrissy!)

And still more dogs
of friends and family

And more animals - wild and domestic

And more and more and more

I hiked so many places I hadn't hiked before!  Cabot Bay Trail and Dodd Narrows, Buttertubs Marsh, Morrell Nature Preserve, East Sooke Park, Hemer Park and several other ones in the Cedar-Yellowpoint area, Stoney Hill Regional Park, Heart Lake and Stocking Lake, and so many others:

And I took photographs galore.

My daughter and son-in-law came for a visit, my oldest nephew and family came for a visit, my sister-in-law and I went for a vacation at Saratoga Beach, and I visited friends and family on the mainland.  For someone with as small a family as I have, that's really pretty awesome!

It was a good year.  For me.

And now, as we usher in 2017, I do what I always do at this time of year.  I get an urge to declutter and organize.  Although I declutter all year round (I keep a box in the bedroom into which I put stuff I don't need, and when it is full - off to the thrift store it goes), there is always more to be done - old files to be cleaned out, knick knacks to be reconsidered, closets to be divested of the clothes that are too uncomfortable, too stained, or two small to make it to centre stage. Many items get held, put in the box, pulled out, held again, as my resolve to minimize fluctuates back and forth on the wings of nostalgia.

But if these are the most difficult decisions I have to make, then I am fortunate - for so many have to make decisions about whether to flee their war-torn country or stay, whether to spend their last few quarters on some real food or check out the dumpster once again, whether to go for that risky or unpleasant medical procedure or take a chance that they will survive.

If dealing with a sore back or bum knee or wonky hip is the most discomfort I have to deal with, then I am fortunate - for so many are dealing with far worse ailments, far more pain, far greater disability.

If missing my daughter who now lives far away is the greatest sorrow I feel, then I am fortunate.  For so many are watching their children struggle with illnesses that may one day take their lives - children with cancer, children with rare diseases, children with terrible injuries from accidents.  What those parents would give to have a healthy child again.

If tightening the belt and adjusting the budget is the most difficult financial challenge I have to face, then I am fortunate - for so many have no income, no home, no budget to manage.

As we travel into the new year, may your decisions be easy ones, your joys be many, your hardships be few, your loved ones be well.

What adventures will 2017 bring?
HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

It's all about Love!

Tuesday was a sunny spring day, so I took the opportunity to take some more photos of our friends at RASTA.  They were quite chatty.  But then they decided to take over the blog....

Why is that volunteer pointing her camera at us again?

We dunno - maybe because we are so adorable?

I hear it's because she has a blog 
and wants to share us with the world.  

Is that true, camera person?
[Me:  Well, sort of.  I want everyone to fall in love with you this Valentine's Day]

Well wait a sec, then.  I'm not quite ready....

Here's my coy look.

Hold on, hold on!
I haven't finished my bath yet!

I'd make a fine Valentine.
I won't even mind if your room is a pig sty! 

The ladies all love me -
I'm no male chauvinist pig!

 "Give me land, lots of land, under starry skies above...
Don't fence me in!"

Can I be Valentines with my ball?
I love my ball! 

Duck, are you ready yet?
She's waiting for you.

I do wish they'd give us advance notice of these photo shoots.

I hope she'll remove this straw from my eye.
I'm too tired to move.

Thank you, camera lady.
Nice photoshop. 

Hey blog reader! Yes, you...
will YOU be my Valentine?

Psst...I think it's me they want.

I'd make a great Valentine!
I just hope the camera person  doesn't add any silly captions - 
we have feelings too, y'know.

Cool it, guys!
This is serious business. 
The world is watching!

How about YOU?
Will you be our Valentine?
Just click on over to the RASTA website and make a donation.
And if you sponsor us, we'll be your Valentines forever!