Buffaloland Park
A gift from the Province of Alberta
Located at Milltown Cross, on Route 4, 6 km south of Montague, Buffaloland Park is open to the public 7 days a week.
The grassy path leads to a wooden deck where display pedestals provide information about buffalo. The deck overlooks a 100-acre enclosure where the herd of 43 of these large and wonderous animals graze.
The American buffalo is a massive horned woolly ruminant native to North America—a descendant of one of the great Pleistocene giants that wandered across the Bering Strait land bridge during the last Ice Age. Our buffalo history dates back to 1973 when the Province of Alberta gifted the Province of Prince Edward Island a herd of prairie buffaloes in honour of the Island’s centennial celebrations.
These 15 buffaloes, 7 males and 8 females, travelled 5,000KM in 6 days from Edmonton to PEI. After a series of transfers: freight train—freight car—ferry—truck, they finally arrived, becoming the province’s one and the only herd of buffaloes.
Walter “Spud” Stewart (left) personally escorted the original herd from Alberta to Milltown Cross in 1973. Not one buffalo was lost along the trip thanks to Stewart’s meticulous care. “That train was a long one,” Stewart said, “But I checked on them as often as I could.” By the time Stewart and the animals arrived at the Borden ferry, Mr. Stewart said, “I pretty much smelled like a buffalo.” Despite the hardship Stewart had gone through during the trip, Stewart commented the escorting as “a dream job.”
UPEI Tour of Buffaloland Park was organized in 2014, aiming to establish memories between students and buffaloes. Students from different faculties were enlightened by this visit in a different way. One student recalled: “Knowing the existing truth of buffaloes being there brings one nothing that ever comes close to the shock running through one’s spine when one is physically there and watching.”
In 2015, Buffalo Feeding Activity was operated to provide visitors with a great opportunity to learn about how buffaloes interact with their caretakers in a lovely way. Children were excited and adults were amazed.
In the spring of 2018, there had been a baby boom. The number of buffalo went up by five. Baby buffaloes never went far away from their mothers who had been extremely protective. This special bond of the parent-child is only possible to re-emerge under the condition where joint effort has been made.
Horse Sanctuary
Located at 69 Mitchell Road in Primrose, PE, Horse Sanctuary is the home to 72 horses with 40-hectare of land.
James, who spends most of his time taking care of horses, knows their habits very well. Horses don’t like to stay in the barn. They like to wander on the field in the morning, even on snowy days, unless there is freezing rain. In the afternoon, their silhouettes are nowhere to be found, as they all congregate at their secret spot inside the forest.
Horses are usually docile and friendly to people. Horses rescued by Moonlight include: Spotted Saddle horses, Shire horses, Clydesdale horses and racing horses. Horse Sanctuary was initiated to let these horses spend their twilight years in peace and comfort.
Wade Loane, supervisor of sanctuary for Moonlight, said, “We treat them with respect and there’s no stress on the horses.” “It’s all about the well-being of the animals.”
“Knowing that he’s there really gives me peace of mind,” said Patricia.
Six years ago, when Patricia moved out of PEI, she couldn’t take Pirate. Moonlight Sanctuaries was the best trustee to her. Patricia said she visits Pirate, now 22, every summer. Pirate still recognizes her, she said, and comes when she whistles.
“He’s in wonderful shape,” she said. “Last time I was there James was telling me he has a little girlfriend…” Not only Patricia, many former owners still pay regular visits to their horse from time to time.
Editor met this horse for the very first time and he walked toward me asking for a gentle touch on the nose. Then, another folk followed. Isn’t it amazing?
Horse Sanctuary is so popular that many people want to send their horses here. There is currently a waiting list.
The fact is that Moonlight would love to receive more horses, but sanctuary is currently at full capacity.
The facility needs an upgrade and the size of our land is the bottleneck.
To strive for the wellness of a greater number of horses, Moonlight asks for your generous help.
Together, individuals can make a difference.
Cattle Sanctuary
Located at 2164 Seven Mile Road, Cardigan, PE, Cattle Sanctuary accommodates more than 100 cattle in total.
Cattle play a unique role in human history, having been domesticated for at least 10,500 years. Cattle that Moonlight keeps are dairy cattle and beef cattle. Cattle spend their days in herds of around 40-50 cattle, grazing on the grasslands and shrubbery. Grain is also a special treat for cattle. There is an old English tale which claims that cattle will always sit down when it’s going to rain.
Under natural conditions, baby calves stay with their mother until weaning at 8 to 11 months. Calves are able to stand up and run the moment they are born. In a protective environment, cattle are free from predators; however, they are still on alert due to their instincts.
It is commonly thought that bulls are aggravated by the colour red. This is in fact not true as cows are colour blind and cannot distinguish between different colours. It is not the colour of the flag that would spur the cow on, but, in fact, the waving of the material itself. Don’t panic when dressed in red; bulls are generally docile. Try to avoid swaggering and waving, as bulls might consider such behaviors as provocation.
Mother cows are loving, caring, and protective during parenting. As familiar as mother cows are with their caretakers, approaching baby calves seems impossible. Just like with our mothers, mother cows will safeguard their babies regardless of the cost.
Now under the Moonlight, mothers and babies will remain safe and sound.
