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City dog park receives official name and funding, ready for construction

Urban dog park received a $10,000 donation from Prairie Animal Health Centre and is ready for construction
Anastasiia Bykhovskaia
Anastasiia Bykhovskaia
PAHC dog park
From left, Prairie Animal Health Centre owner Dr. Greg Douglas, Estevan Kinsmen Club president Adam Beck, Kinsmen Club member and dog park project chair Jake Porter, PAHC owner Dr. Carol Ross, Kinette Tara Kyle, Estevan Kinette Club vice-president Krissy Wallman, Kinette Angela Bresciani with a future park user Snickers, and Kristin Caldwell from PAHC, at the naming rights and cheque presentation. Photo by Anastasiia Bykhovskaia

ESTEVAN - The new urban dog park in Estevan received the new name that came with a significant donation on Friday.

Now the newly named Prairie Animal Health Centre (PAHC) Dog Park that will be in Hillside Park, located between Henry and George Streets in Estevan, has enough funds for the construction.

Doctors of veterinary medicine (DVM) and owners of PAHC Carol Ross and Greg Douglas, along with chief of veterinary operations at PAHC Kristin Caldwell were at the location Friday afternoon to present the cheque for $10,000 to the local representatives of Kinsmen and Kinette Clubs.

"Socialization's really important to the mental health of dogs. It really does help with behaviour. And so it's definitely something that we see bringing enrichment to the dogs' lives in Estevan and in the surrounding community," said Caldwell.

"When Jake (Porter, project chair) had reached out and asked if we would partner together, we knew right away that we wanted to be part of it in some way," she added.

Porter said that PAHC got back to him saying that they wanted to help out with the city dog park in just two weeks, and everything went fast from there.

"It was very nice to have PAHC on board so quickly. It means a lot for sure," Porter said.

The Kinsmen Club received approval from the city and has already found the construction company to get the work done.

"It's been quite seamless. And everybody's been enthusiastic and onboard. The city, Prairie Animal Health Centre, Kinsmen and Kinettes. Everybody's been quite excited about it," Porter said.

Located on the north side of the city, the new dog park will be in addition to the existing dog park at Woodlawn Regional Park, and will offer a walking distance option for walking dogs to many people in Estevan.

The money donated by PAHC will cover the entire cost of the construction, which is supposed to be fulfilled by Estevan's Borderline Fencing Services. And Porter said they are eager to start working on the project.

They will utilize the two sides of the fence at Hillside Park, adding a pet screen on the outside for safety, and will build the remaining two mash walls. There will be a smaller holding pen that will open into the bigger pen and a water tank for watering.

The plan is to start construction on Sept. 20.