Public urged to obey the rules while enjoying the Bunny Park

Tania Forrest-Smith, the founder of the Bunny Park Rescue Group, is pleading with visitors who visit the Bunny Park to stop feeding the animals.

Those who want to feed them should rather ask the staff what can be fed to the animals.

This comes after one of the sheep fell ill for about a week and was taken to the vet.

Ward 27 councillor Lornette Joseph said it is important for the public not to feed animals the incorrect food or to swim or fish in the water.

“We encourage and welcome families to visit the Bunny Park and want them to come and enjoy what the park has to offer.

We just ask that visitors love the park and animals as much as we do and keep the rules in mind. We want happy, healthy animals and visitors who visit us often,” said Lornette.

Tania explained the contents of the sheep’s bowel were examined and it was found it had eaten the incorrect food.

“This is why we are constantly appealing to the public to feed correctly. Apart from that, most people don’t know what the goats, sheep, bunnies and emus can eat,” she said.

“At the kiosk they sell pellets for example for the bunnies, but not for the goats and sheep.”

Tania added members of the public must note that if anyone who works at the park asks you not to allow your child to do something please understand as they are doing their job.

The Northmead resident still visits the park to regularly to assist where she can. She has been actively involved in the park for the past seven years.

She and her husband are building a play area for the goats.

“Goats need human interaction, they love playing and I have managed to tame them. I have names for each of the goats, emus and sheep and they are very friendly with me,” said Tania.

“The public must understand that the park is not a petting zoo.

So respect the animals and what the park offers. We also urge the public to stop littering. If a bunny eats a piece of plastic it will die.

“All we want is for the visitors to enjoy the park and have a beautiful experience.

There are a lot of walkways, jungle gyms, sitting areas, clean toilets even for the disabled, so why not create memories with your family at the park?”

Tania said visitors must always remember to wear their masks.

“The park has four security officers 24/7 and they walk around the park to ensure everyone is safe.

All we are asking for is for people to respect the rules,” she said.

Tania added that there are signs around the park of what people can do. The signs were sponsored by Mission Print in Northmead.

Metro spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said specific rules are displayed at the entrance of each park; however, all parks and public open spaces are governed by the metro by-laws.

“The Regulation of Parks and Open Spaces By-Laws was approved and adopted in 2002 and amended in 2005.

These by-laws are available on the metro’s website,” said Dlamini.

“The metro has three farmyard parks where a number of domesticated farm animals are kept for educational purposes.

Specific rules, pertaining to the feeding of animals are displayed at the entrance of each park, and visitors should strictly adhere to these rules.”

Dlamini said nutrition in feed is a complex scientific field. It requires knowledge of the digestive physiology of the different types of animals as well as the biochemistry of converting nutrients to metabolites for entering the metabolic pathways.

For this reason, the metro appointed a team of animal nutritionist from the University of Pretoria in 2019.

Food types have been categorised into three groups: good foods, snacks or treats and bad food.

Visitors should strongly refrain from feeding animal food from the second category (snacks or treats or sweets) and a third category (bad food).

• Primary food (good food): hay, teff, eragrostis, lucerne, sorghum, seeds and pellets.

• Snacks or treats (moderate food): pumpkins, beans, mealies, lettuce, carrots, spinach, apples and pears.

• Bad food: bread, onions, tomatoes and sugar.

The park, situated on Pretoria Road, is open Monday to Sunday from 09:00 to 16:00.

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