News
Reprinted with permission
Local News - Monday, September 05,
2005
Veterinarian Rod Jouppi, well known for his caring of injured wild
animals through his Walden Animal Hospital, is expanding that work
through a not-for-profit wildlife refuge, Wild at Heart.
Over the last year Jouppi and a group of tireless volunteers have cared
for an estimated 400 animals — everything from birds and raccoons to
bear cubs and even a baby moose.
The centre is equipped for various medical procedures, including
suturing, cleaning, setting broken bones and surgery. The goal is to
nurture injured or orphaned wildlife and return them to their natural
habitat.
Jouppi has frequently been invited to talk to students in their
classrooms about the centre, what it does, and the animals it cares for.
But he has plans to take the work of the centre and its volunteer core
much further.
For starters, the centre has recently become recognized as a charitable
organization. That, Jouppi hopes, will allow it to secure government
funding and donations in order to build an accessible facility that
would accommodate more animals and more visitors.
He already has plans for a new building to be located next door to the
Walden Animal Hospital. The new facility could accommodate and care for
as many as 1,000 animals a year.
Plans call for the new centre to be equipped with one-way mirrors and
video systems so visitors can learn about the animals without disturbing
their care or routines.
Over the years, Jouppi, through his work, has become known to a great
many people and organizations. As a result a number of relationships
have been made, and he wants to build on those relationships for the
benefit of the animals in his care and the community as a whole.
Science North, for example, already refers many people to the refuge
centre when an animal is in need.
But a stronger link between Jouppi’s wildlife centre and Science North
is possible and desirable. The two facilities have much in common. Both
provide an educational experience to visitors, and both have the
capacity to pull in more tourists to the city.
Furthermore, both are part of a growing ecotourism industry in the
North.
As Jouppi points out, visitors to Science North are introduced to the
wild animals there, and they can in turn visit wild at heart and learn
more about how animals live in the wild and how they are cared for when
human intervention is needed.
It’s a venture worthy of community support. The benefits to the animals
are obvious. The economic and educational benefits to the community
should be just as obvious.
Sudbury’s tourism sector is always looking for ways to attract visitors
to this area and to keep them here longer when they do visit. With wild
at heart, the list of must-see attractions can be expanded and the
temptation for a tourist to stay a little longer is that much stronger.
And with the centre serving as an educational resource, learning to
co-exist with nature — part of living in Northern Ontario — is something
Sudbury could market to the world.
Wild
At Heart Wildlife Refuge Centre
