Kismet Creek turning heads

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This article was published 31/03/2019 (2234 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Kismet Creek Farm has been getting a whole lot of attention for a lot of different reasons lately, but the couple that runs the farm said although the attention is nice, their efforts will always be focused on caring for their animals and giving those animals the best life possible.

“If that little bit of extra attention is what gets people through the doors that’s a good thing, because it will help us to take care of our animals, but we definitely don’t seek out the attention,” Kismet Creek co-owner Karl Schoenrock said on Tuesday afternoon while tending to some of the more than 160 animals that live on the farm.

Karl along with his wife Raelle have been running the Kismet Creek just south of Steinbach as a sanctuary farm since 2014 and with their operation they work to save and care for farm animals that would otherwise end up neglected, abandoned or possibly sent to be slaughtered.

The work the couple has been doing is getting attention in a number of different ways as recently Rogers Hometown Hockey, which broadcast from Steinbach on March 10, produced and aired an entire segment about the farm and the work they do during their Hometown Hockey Broadcast.

For Karl and Raelle being featured on the broadcast was a dream come true, the couple said.

“They did a great job and we had a blast working with them,” Raelle said. “Growing up Hockey Night in Canada was my family’s thing, so my entire family was pumped when they saw us on the broadcast.”

Raelle admitted she was very surprised when Rogers asked if they could film a segment on their farm and broadcast it across the country.

“We were so shocked when we got the email,” she said. “Nobody approached us about the farm, it was just a situation where they looked up things to do near Steinbach and our farm popped up and they thought it was a unique idea.”

The attention from a national audience has also led to a donation and words of support from a Canadian hockey broadcasting icon, as soon after the segment was shot Karl said he got an envelope sent to him with both a donation and a signed photograph from hockey legend Don Cherry.

“It was just totally unexpected and it was sent with no return address and just said D.C. in the corner, so as I was opening it up I had no idea what it was,” Karl said.

“I saw the signed photograph and I just started smiling, and then when I shook the envelope a cheque came out and he had donated $500 to us.”

“I was just super pumped.”

That signed photograph now hangs proudly in the main barn at the farm.

Attention has also come the farm’s way because of a very large animal living there, as Dozer the Steer has been mentioned as possibly the tallest steer in the world, and has been compared by local and even international media to a steer in Australia that went viral recently after a picture of it towering over other cows was found online.

Raelle said they are not concerned if Dozer, who stands at approximately six-and-a-half feet tall, is destined for the Guinness Book of World Records, but just want to focus on giving him a good life and a good home.

“If people come to see Dozer and maybe see what else is going on then that’s great, but we won’t be seeking out Guinness,” she said with a laugh.

“Guinness can decide that one.”

Karl said what the sanctuary has been doing since 2014 is growing at a steady pace and saving and caring for their animals, and that will always be their priority.

“We’re slowly growing at a good pace and that’s how we like it,” Karl said.

In the past few years they have also been opening up their farm to guests, and as a spot for school tours, field trips and even seniors’ outings.

Karl said having people and especially children come to the farm is the greatest reward for him.

“It energizes us to see the kids and see their faces when they interact with the animals,” Karl said.

“Anything we can do with education and with kids is great, and we like to expose them to animals they might not normally have experiences with.”

Karl said they are also focused on getting youth to spend more time outdoors.

“We see too many kids on computers and devices and not spending time outside, and we don’t like to see kids with their faces in their phones,” he said.

“We grew up outside and we know how important it is for kids to spend time outdoors.”