The Rural Voice, 1992-03, Page 30Replicas of Dutch -style buildings are among the features of the Burgsmas' park. (photo by Sandra Orr)
A farmer's animal park
by Sandra Orr
Because he loved nature and wild ani-
mals, Harry Burgsma of R.R. 6 Goderich
converted the swamp area across the road
from his home into a haven for wild crea-
tures. The water running through the park
was diverted for ponds, a small dam and
fountains. Passers-by on the concession
road can stop to have a look at the ani-
mals — the ostriches, deer, llamas and
others, and fowl such as ducks, swans and
peacocks.
Since looking after wild animals is a
very expensive hobby, Harry recovers
some expenditures by selling his stock.
Young deer, zebras and llama have been
sold to private owners for breeding stock.
"The llama is the sort of animal which
people like to have as a pet. It has receiv-
ed a lot of publicity," he says. This pet
can cost between $7,000 and $13,000; the
female Cuban llama fetches an even high-
er price because of the colours of her coat.
The park has steadily grown over the
past nine years, but Harry says he will not
make the park much bigger nor add more
animals. While some of the animals are
bred in Texas and Arizona, none are
brought in from outside North America.
Trained as a carpenter in his native
Holland, Harry has built several replicas
of Dutch buildings. Before the second
world war, Dutch farmhouses commonly
had thatched roofs; his half-size replica
includes a thatch of cleaned timothy, at-
tached with wire. "It takes longer to clean
off the little leaves than it does to build a
thatch," he says. The house is decorated
as it would have been in Holland, with
fireplace, furniture, bedstead and china; a
load of hay could fit into the attached barn
at the rear of the house. The roof can be
raised to store the crop, or lowered as the
hay is used up. In the haymow beside the
farmhouse, several small kangaroos and
wallabies cavort.
Another of Harry's replicas is a full-
sized smoke house which he uses, not for
its intended purpose, but to house pea-
cocks.
Running at large in the 7 1/2 acre
park, the deer keep the grass clipped. Be-
cause they are wild, they are hard to catch
in order to test for tuberculosis, a govern-
ment regulation that must be met when
such animals are bought and sold in Can-
ada. As a result, says Harry, the deer are
difficult to sell.
His biggest challenge is finding time
to keep everything in tip-top working or -
26 THE RURAL VOICE