If a new wave of volunteers doesn’t step up soon for the Weyburn Therapeutic Animal Park, it will be forced to close its gates.  Don Sealy, the current sole caretaker of the park, has been doing all of the work required to maintain the park, but it is simply too much for one person.

The workload isn’t just feeding the animals. In fact, there is plenty to be done this spring, even before animals can reside at the park for the season.

Local business owner, Melanie Ror, has taken it upon herself to rally for the park. Her intention is to form a Committee of at least six directors to run the park long term.

Ror expressed the park’s need for dedicated volunteers for the animal park. She says they will need 15 people, with each offering a minimum of one hour per week at the park doing morning or evening chores, such as watering, feeding and other maintenance duties.

“You can volunteer your time in many different ways. A volunteer can come and do chores,” said Ror. “Or if you can’t do chores, maybe you can do fundraising.”

A steak supper fundraiser for the park was postponed to June 2. The decision was made in hopes of being able to be able to have more time to find volunteers.

Once the park sparks an interest in a committee, Ror explained, work will commence. Bird pens need to be assembled and welded, rabbit pen needs a concrete floor poured and a pen built, feed can be brought in and then, finally the animals can join the community.

The Therapeutic Animal Park is located immediately west of the Tatagwa View nursing home and Tatagwa Kidz Kare.

“I think anybody who has animals knows how therapeutic animals are,” Ror noted. “The people in Tatagwa nursing home or at the daycare, they go to the therapeutic animal park to see these animals and they kind of get that pet therapy that they maybe don’t get or else can’t get at home.”

“I have a house that has two cats in it, but we don’t have goats anymore on our farm,” said Ror. “So it’s nice to go and see goats and sheep and all the different kind of farm animals that you don’t normally get to see. So it’s really important that people have access to get that animal therapy.”

For more information on volunteering on the board or at the park, contact Melanie Ror at 306-861-9522.

For more details on the steak supper fundraiser, visit the Discover Weyburn Events calendar here.