Not your average
There is, it seems, out of necessity, a growing number of rescue organisations for animals. With so many animals in dire need of sanctuary, I was relieved as I drove up, that the paddocks were not chocka full of various farm animals in desperate need of rehoming. This is because Sharlene Wilson of Canterbury Tails Animal Rescue & Sanctuary, knows what she is doing and has obviously spent time thinking about how best she can help as many animals in need as she can. Sharlene and her very supportive husband Blair, moved to their Eyrewell lifestyle block in 2015, but it was in 2017 that Sharlene was contacted by a friend worried about a pet pig who needed a safe home. Paul, a much-loved pet, had outgrown his home but there were very few options for this beautiful, intelligent boy and letting him go to the works was just not on the cards. With more and more queries coming in for rehoming, Sharlene explains what led to creating a data base of foster homes, transport and volunteers. “In April last year I was told about a lady in Titirangi who was
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Animal Rescue
words & photos by Cathy Dee
trying to find a home for her 4-month-old pet pig, Scarlett I discovered that Scarlett was much loved and the lady was having trouble finding a home where she would be a pet and not put in the pot”. Desperately wanting to help Scarlet but unable to find immediate transport to Canterbury, Sharlene put the word out on their Canterbury Tails Facebook page, asking for a temporary foster home in the North Island, until she could arrange transport down here to the farm. Amazingly she then had four people immediately offer a home. Narrowing it down to two, after exchanging photographs and then speaking to them, she found the perfect home on a large property with 2 kunekune paddock mates in Rotorua. The next problem was transport from Titirangi. “Incredibly”, she says, “an amazing person from the Waikato contacted me and asked if she could be of assistance. She explained she couldn’t foster or take in an animal permanently, but that transportation was something she could offer”. So two weeks later Scarlett was driven, with love and care, from Titirangi to Rotorua on blankets in the backseat of a car. This is when she realized that if she had a database of people all over the country she could contact, not only would location not be a barrier, but more animals could be rescued if they could be fostered out before rehoming. “We decided that by working with others and asking for help, together we could be the change in more lives, animal and human, and that is why we ultimately decided to launch Canterbury Tails”. I ask Sharlene what the most common issue she finds is, and the answer surprises me. “Animals left on properties when they are sold”. She also ascertains that there is no such thing as a small pig. They all grow to be big, strong, independently minded animals who quickly become a problem if not looked after and housed properly. Although the focus is farm animals, namely, pigs, ducks, chooks, sheep, goats, cows, alpaca and horses, other animals will be assisted where possible, and they aim to work with additional organizations where they can. Occasionally there is a crisis where a lot of animals (usually birds such as ducks or chickens) are in need of homes at once. Such was the case that happened in June when 171 chickens were recovered from a free-range egg farm south of Christchurch. A dozen lucky hens went straight to a safe home to recuperate, and the remaining girls are currently under the care of Canterbury Tails. “An amazing fosterer looked after 50 hens for us off site, and organised the vet visits in the first 3 weeks. Which left us with around 140 hens! Unfortunately, we had a lot of sickness in the first few weeks.