Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre got a big boost during its fourth annual Caring For Our Wildlife Online Auction.
Katriina Ruotsalo and Craig Fielding matched the funds raised, providing the licensed wildlife rehabilitation facility and registered charity with $23,000, bringing the total amount raised to $45,701.75
Ruotsalo and Fielding are the owners of Northern Legacy Horse Farm in Whitefish.
“We’re happy to support Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre because we’ve seen that they’re not only helping individual animals, but also providing a valuable service to the communities of northern Ontario,” Ruotsalo and Fielding said in a release from the centre.
“Many of the wild animals in their care are there due to human activity, and we think that helping them is just the right thing to do.”
The centre serves an enormous geographic area – about 130,000 square kilometers of northern Ontario.
“There is an extreme need for wildlife rehabilitation in northern Ontario, and we’re attempting to fulfill that need for the vast area we cover,” said Gloria Morissette, the Centre’s authorized wildlife custodian. “Our online auction is one of the ways we pay for food, medical equipment, and housing for our wild patients. We’re so grateful for the support of Northern Legacy Horse Farm, and all the auction volunteers, donors, and bidders.”
Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre has taken in animals from as far away as Kenora, Timmins, North Bay, and Manitoulin Island.
In 2022, the Centre cared for 800 wild animals – each with its own special dietary, housing, and treatment needs. The costs add up – reaching $80,000 last year.
Centres like Turtle Pond also benefit by:
- Helping to protect biodiversity (i.e. all species of turtle are at-risk in Ontario);
- Acting as an educational resource for people who come into contact or conflict with wildlife;
- Providing a place for people to bring orphaned, injured, or ill wild animals where they’ll receive the best possible care and a chance to return to the wild;
- Being there to care for wild animals that people aren’t allowed to keep without a license - wildlife is everyone's responsibility and;
- Protecting public health by being alert to the possibility of zoonoses (diseases that can transfer from animals to humans).
For more information about the Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre visit turtlepondwc.com.
