Ile des Chenes wildlife rescue fears future demand after St. Adolphe facility announces closing

Manitoba will lose one of its two multi-species animal refuges at the end of the summer, and the one that will remain is bracing for an influx of animals.

Prairie Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre in St. Adolphe announced last week that it would no longer take in animals because it plans to close at the end of the summer after operating for 19 years.

“Every year brings new challenges and changes related to volunteers, funding, donations, politics, staffing, and the increasing costs of wildlife rehabilitation, including food, medical care, and facility maintenance,” the social media post said. “After much consideration, we have made the difficult decision to begin winding down the organization.”

Prairie Wildlife has relied on support from the public through donations, memberships, merchandise sales and fundraising events. It doesn’t receive monetary support from the government.

It also treats all species of birds — from sparrows to eagles — as well as reptiles and small to medium-sized mammals including rabbits, squirrels and coyotes. The centre had a volunteer veterinarian and partnered with local veterinary hospitals, including Pembina Veterinary Hospital and Bridgwater Veterinary Hospital.

Zoe Nakata, executive director of Wildlife Haven Rehabilitation Centre in Ile des Chenes, said the closure is a blow to efforts to rescue wildlife in Manitoba.

“There are so many animals in Manitoba that require care, and when we know that someone you know is not able to provide that anymore after almost 20 years, (it) was really sad.”

Nakata said her rehab centre has been dealing with unprecedented demand; patient admissions have increased 60 per cent compared to the same time last year. The closure of the St. Adolphe shelter will exacerbate that by as much as 35 per cent, she said.

“It’s really difficult; you need to pay staff, you need to pay for medicine and food, you need proper enclosures, so it takes a lot of resources to provide all that care,” Nakata said.

Wildlife Haven, which has been operating since 1984, admits more than 3,000 sick, injured and orphaned wild animals each year and responds to more than 35,000 public calls through its hotline.

The organization cares for more than 170 species of native Manitoba wildlife, including mammals, songbirds, reptiles, raptors and waterfowl. Its medical team includes a full-time veterinarian and several certified wildlife rehabilitators.

Admissions vary annually, but this spring had brought a significant increase in animals even before Prairie Wildlife announced it would close.

“This season will certainly be unprecedented for us in terms of the required donations and volunteers,” Nakata said.

The shelter is developing a strategy to handle the increase in demand.

“What’s at stake is that we’re not going to be able to give a second chance to every animal that deserves it, and that’s quite heartbreaking,” Nakata said.

One day before Prairie Wildlife announced its demise, the Manitoba government said it would give Wildlife Haven $650,000 for upgrades, including repairs to the main building and raptor (birds of prey) enclosures, safety upgrades, a modernized contact centre and the construction of two outdoor enclosures for aquatic mammals and waterfowl.

Nakata said the organization’s most urgent need is operational funding and it continues to discuss that with the provincial government.

“We know more and more that biodiversity is critical to our ecosystems,” she said. “It’s actually critical to human health. So that means having healthy populations of wild animals in our environment — in our beautiful province of Manitoba — it is important, and it does have an impact on our ecosystems, on the planet’s health.

Wildlife Haven will launch an online fundraising auction next Tuesday.

zoe.pierce@freepress.mb.ca