Saving local wildlife is a walk in the park

On Sat., Sept. 7, the Prairie Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre (PWRC) will hold its annual Walk/Run for Wildlife fundraiser at St. Vital Park.

PWRC is a local non-profit that cares for local wildlife that have been injured or orphaned, in addition to educating the public about wildlife.

Since the walk began in 2013, it has been PWRC’s biggest fundraiser, with fun for volunteers, family, and friends. The walk will start at 9 a.m., and participants who arrive a few minutes early will be able to enjoy warm-up session of yoga in the park. There is a five-kilometre run, a five-kilometre walk, a 10-kilometre walk/run, and a team five-kilometre walk/run.

Participants can register ahead of time with the Running Room, or on the day of the race, and are encourage to collect donations and pledges will go directly to cover the cost of rehabilitation for the wildlife patients cared for each year by PWRC, which averages over 1,200 animal rescues annually.

In addition to taking part a great event and supporting PWRC, participants will also receive swag bags and, after the race, there are refreshments and a pancake breakfast.

PWRC animal ambassadors will also be on hand for participants to visit up close and in person and to find out more about the animals and species from the PWRC education team. PWRC ambassadors are former rescues that cannot be released back into the wild, including owls, falcons, rabbits, and Arctic, the arctic fox who leads the walk each year.

Another exciting part of the walk is the annual release of a rescue — before the walk begins, the winner of the previous race will release a recent wildlife rescue that is ready to return to the wild, which always makes for a special moment for volunteers and participants.

A fall walk in St. Vital Park is a wonderful way to spend a Saturday morning in September, and participants will be able to support PWRC in covering their operating costs, food, medical, and construction expenses, and, hopefully, helping fund a new site, which PWRC desperately needs.

Any animal or nature lovers interested in registering should contact the Running Room or PWRC at pwrcentre@gmail.com

Abigail Byle is a community correspondent for St Vital. Follow her on Twitter, @abbyinitio or email her, byle104@gmail.com