Hope for Wildlife (HFW) is a non-profit wildlife rehabilitation and education centre located on a farm in Seaforth, Halifax Nova Scotia, Canada. It was founded by Hope Swinimer in 1997 as The Eastern Shore Wildlife Rehabilitation and Rescue Centre. It got its current name in 2005. The centre is dedicated to providing care to injured and orphaned animals before releasing them back into the wild. It also seeks to connect people to wildlife in a positive way through education for a sustainable future. To date, the center has helped over 40,000 animals return to their wild habitat, representing over 200 species. The money for the farm comes mostly from small donations. Bigger donations come from events like the open house where people tour the farm, a government grant for summer internships, and money from the TV show. In an interview with a local paper, Swinimer admits the show is "a little hammed up," but it brings money into the rehab centre and children from all over the country write letters asking about the animals. A volunteer tells of meeting people in South Africa who first heard of Nova Scotia on the show, which airs in more than 20 countries."
Video Hope for Wildlife
History
While working at Dartmouth Veterinary Hospital in 1995, Hope Swinimer received as a patient a robin that had been attacked by a cat, and while taking care of the bird she developed an eagerness to learn more about taking care of injured wildlife. Her passion quickly led her to start doing wildlife rehabilitation as a full-time career, turning her home into a makeshift rehabilitation center, starting with a few cages in the backyard and using her spare room as a nursery. In 1996, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) required Hope to obtain a wildlife rehabilitation permit for her makeshift wildlife center even though such a permit did not exist in Nova Scotia at the time. Hope worked with DNR to establish a licensing process that allowed for wildlife rehabilitation in the province. In 1997 she received her rehabilitation permit and moved to Winnie's Way in Seaforth, Nova Scotia. Here she established the Eastern Shore Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre. The centre became the first fully operating wildlife rescue facility in Nova Scotia. After just a few years the demands for the centre's help outgrew the property and in 2001 Hope moved again. Staying in Seaforth, Hope moved to a farm property which allowed for expansion to her growing business. Five years after this move, the Eastern Shore Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre officially became known as Hope for Wildlife, a registered charitable organization that continues to grow.
Maps Hope for Wildlife
Mission statement
The organization has put forth a mission statement to outline what it wishes to achieve. It lists three main goals:
- Rescue, rehabilitate and reintroduce to the wild injured and orphaned wildlife.
- Educate others about the importance of conserving wild animals and the ecosystems that sustain them.
- Research and develop the knowledge and understanding necessary for the conservation and management of wildlife.
Progress
Since 1997 the facility has grown phenomenally, starting with development of the education centre which allowed for people to visit the facility and learn about wildlife and what the organization does. The education centre itself grew and now consists of one building, an outdoor pavilion and wildlife gardens. Many accomplishments have been made on the rehabilitation side of the facility too. Hope for Wildlife became the first in the province to legally rehabilitate and release white tailed deer and birds of prey, developing a 100-foot-long flight cage for large birds and a deer enclosure which consists of over an acre of field and a small barn designed for raising orphaned white tailed deer. The facility hit a milestone when they opened the first wildlife veterinary hospital in the province back in 2012. The next big projects consisted of building a marine unit, for the growing number of injured seal pups and sea birds. Following the marine unit a large mammal unit was constructed at the back of the property for the larger predator mammals, such as bobcats. On average, the centre sees about 3,500 animals a year, continuing to take in more animals each year. These animals may have been injured, orphaned or lost. Animals the centre has worked with include fox, deer, raccoons, skunks and beavers.
The centre receives approximately 10,000 callers a year to its wildlife helpline, which is put in place for anyone who comes into contact with a wild animal in need of assistance.
Funding
The organization gets most of its funding from small donations given by the public, both those who visit the centre and those who call the helpline. The majority of donations are around $10 and pay for about $95,000 of necessities such as feed, cleaning supplies, and building upkeep.
Larger donations come from events like the annual open house that the centre hosts, gift shop proceeds, government grants set forth for summer internships and any money coming from a TV series, simply named Hope for Wildlife, that follows many of the organization's stories.
Tours of the facility
Hope for Wildlife offers guided, educational tours around the site. There is also an annual open house which occurs on the last Sunday of August each year. Here, locals can get a look at some of the animals in the rehabilitation centre and what goes on behind the scenes. Activities including live music, a silent auction, and a barbecue are provided to enhance the experience.
Work opportunities
Volunteering
There are several opportunities for those who would like to volunteer at the centre and get hands-on experience with the animals. Volunteers can choose between tasks including education, construction and maintenance, wildlife rescue, grounds maintenance, animal care, general cleaning, medical assistance, marketing and administration. The volunteer application can be found on the organization's website.
Internships
The centre also offers internship positions for those looking for a future in rehabilitation or animal care. Applications to the internship program are accepted from all over the world. The intern application can also be found on the organization's website.
Television series
Produced by Arcadia Content the documentary, "Hope for Wildlife", follows the team as they nurse thousands of injured and orphaned wildlife back to health and return them to the wild. The stories of the animals and the team members that devote their lives to saving them are depicted in each episode. Filming of the first season began in 2009 and the series is currently airing its seventh season as of 2016. Episodes are an hour long. Online episodes can be found on Arcadia Wild and Oasis HD and The Knowledge Network.
Cast
- Human
- Hope -- founder
- Dr. Barry -- veterinarian
- Allison -- manager
- Rebecca -- staff
- Nicole -- staff
- Sara -- staff
- Animal
- Oliver -- resident barred owl
- Maxwell -- resident skunk
- Dan -- pet peacock
Seasons
List of episodes
Hope TV
Hope TV is the online TV channel based around what happens at HFW. The site launched in the spring of 2017.
References
External links
- Official website (foundation): https://www.hopeforwildlife.net (website)
- Official website (HOPE TV): http://hopeforwildlife.tv/ (web channel)
- Official website (TV series): http://arcadiacontent.com/portfolio/hope-for-wildlife (TV producer)
- TV series production company: http://arcadiacontent.com
- TV production company streaming site: http://arcadiawild.com/videos/hope-for-wildlife/
- Hope for Wildlife on IMDb
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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