Did you know there’s a summer camp all about animals right here in Prince George?
The North Cariboo District Branch of the B.C. SPCA hosts summer camps each year for children aged seven to 11, teaching them about animal care and helps foster positive relationships between kids, animals, and nature.
“These are animal welfare camps so we want to teach the next generation that will be animal advocates in the future to understand animals to appreciate animal welfare issues that are currently going on in our province,” says Alyssa Stauble, manager of community engagement.
Campers are immersed in animal-themed activities including games, projects, visits from guest speakers, and hands-on time with some furry friends.
“With each activity, there’s a lesson and we kind of just sneak the learning in with the fun,” says camp counsellor Lindsay Carpenter. “Kids come away from our camps with all this new knowledge of animal welfare issues and how to properly care for their pets.”
Carpenter says the campers play games like animal jeopardy and nervous cat bingo, which teaches kids all about the actions a cat might do when it’s nervous.
Campers also get to interact with some smaller animals in the shelter like cats, kittens, bunnies, rats, gerbils, or guinea pigs depending on what’s available at the shelter.
Carpenter says small groups will go into the adoption rooms to visit the animals.
“We will bring a few children into each room with a camp counsellor and everyone sits and the cat comes around and everyone gets to pet it,” explains Carpenter. “It’s empowering for kids to learn that if you stay still the cat will come to you, so we like to teach how to properly interact with shelter animals and animals in general.”
Since many of the dogs brought into the shelter have behaviour issues they need to work on with staff, Campers don’t interact with the shelter dogs, but that doesn’t mean campers miss out on doggie time.
“We do have staff dogs that have been temperament tested, and we also get in guest speakers that have therapy dogs so they do get to interact with dogs,” explains Stauble.
She says many of the campers will talk about camp to their older siblings and parents, and that helps introduce the whole family to what the SPCA does.
“I think lots of people will think these camps are for kids that are animal lovers, and I’d like to highlight that if your child hasn’t had a lot of exposure to animals or is slightly fearful of animals this is a controlled environment that they can learn and feel safe and be introduced to those animals.”
She adds these camps can help teach kids to be confident around animals and will help them be safe when interacting with animals in the community.
The camps are also a great way for kids who don’t have a pet at home to spend some time with animals and learn what it’s like to have a pet.
“We run these camps all over the province and we have had a ton of feedback of parents whose kids have been pestering them for an animal and they are just not in the right living situation or they just don’t have the time,” says Stauble. “When those kids come to camp and learn about all the things the pets need and they will come home and say ‘you know what we are not ready for a dog but I think a hamster is perfect for us’ because they learn what animals need as far as care.”
The camps take place throughout the summer beginning July 15 and run until Aug. 23 and registration is still available for all camps.
You can register and look at a detailed camp schedule online.
