March 14 & 15 2020 at The Square Palmerston North
Entry is FREE 🙂
Last year more than 30,000 people attended the Hilux New Zealand Rural Games in Palmerston North over the course of a weekend. They were there in their thousands to watch people of all ages trying out different things from tree climbing to digger driving to gumboot or cow-pat throwing.
They are also there to watch the experts sheer sheep, see the sheep dog trials and be enthralled with the cut-throat timber sports.
It’s a free event that is now in it’s 6th year that has been growing from strength to strength each year to the point where for country folk, it is a staunch grass roots item on the annual calendar.
Dogs and horses also feature largely in these rural games and have done since the games inception and the organiser & founder, Steve Hollander says we are to expect even more this year. “Dogs and horses are a huge part of many successful farms and families’..we are ‘thrilled that we’ve had sponsors come on board to help (animal welfare) charities raise their public profile during the games’.
The Ford Ranger New Zealand Rural Games is expecting a few more four-legged visitors through its support of animal welfare organisations.
Retired Working Dogs, Nightrave, Greatmates, Life After Racing and Canine Friends Pet Therapy Dogs, will bring a new dimension to the Games says founder Steve Hollander.
“Dogs and horses are a huge part of many successful farms and families and have been for generations. I’m thrilled that we’ve had sponsors come on board to help each of these charities to raise their public profile during the Games.”
Retired Working Dogs, sponsored by CopRice, is a charity that finds forever homes for old, failed and injured working dogs. Fundraiser, Karen Cox, says they have dogs available of all ages and abilities. Some dogs just don’t want to work, while others may have a career-ending injury. A few dogs can still manage some work on the flat or a small farm or lifestyle blocks. They adapt very well to pet life and have a lot  to offer.Â
Nightrave has been at the Rural Games for the past two years. The charity represents a different kind of working dog.
Nightrave is a nation-wide adoption agency for greyhounds who have retired from racing. Nightrave aim to match families and individuals with a greyhound that will suit their individual needs as pet owners to ensure each greyhound finds the perfect home. Nightrave also provide further training for specific greyhounds that may need some extra attention on their journey to becoming a pet.
“The games allow us to showcase our wonderful greyhounds and what terrific pets they make after finishing their racing career. This year, Greyhound Racing New Zealand are also focusing on educating the public about our rehoming efforts and the training each greyhound goes through to transition into life as a full-time pet” said Marketing Specialist Lisa Jaques.
Harness Racing New Zealand has a vision for Standardbred welfare where “Every Standardbred horse should be treated with respect, compassion and understanding and shall receive a standard of care which allows them to enjoy a good quality of life while in the racing industry and on retirement.” Harness Racing New Zealand will have a presence at the Rural Games for the first time.
“Our mission is to work with the racing industry (trainers, breeders, and owners) rehoming groups, government organisations and welfare groups to enable the care of the Standardbred horses to exceed the current animal welfare standards. Standardbreds can have successful careers after racing in many equestrian disciplines. Our aim is to increase awareness of their suitability for showing, sports horse activities, trekking and so much more,” says Harness Racing New Zealand’s General Manager Corporate Services, Liz Bishop.
The other charity is Canine Friends Pet Therapy. Their volunteers take well-behaved dogs into rest homes, hospices, special education units and hospitals around the country.
Ann Evans, the Manawatu Events Coordinator and Liaison Officer of Canine Friends Pet Therapy says dogs make a genuine difference to the outlook of people who are going through a difficult time – and that’s something we really see a lot in the rural community.
“For those who have retired from farm life, or who are too ill to be on the farm – they really miss the daily interaction with their animals so seeing and interacting with dogs can make a huge difference to their outlook.”
Steve Hollander says the addition of the charities will be a welcome addition to the 2020 Ford Ranger New Zealand Rural Games and will be a huge hit with our competitors and attendees – young and old alike.
At the heart of the Games are a series of traditional sports attracting top competitors from throughout New Zealand and Australia. You can expect to see several national and world champions battling for the prestigious New Zealand Rural Games titles.
This year we are told to expect a brand new category – duck calling. Now we all know how vital a good duck call is to a successful weekend sitting in soggy pants during the duck-hunting season. There’s nothing worse than having an expectant missus who has the oven all primed and ready, looking in the boot to encounter plenty of fresh air and nothing to dine on…uber embarassing.
All joking aside, this is why I love living in the country, days like these ones are pure gold for the memories…speaking of which and linking back to my title up there ^^, pop on over to this link and wander down memory lane to the early 1970s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tAWwqKNI7g
Source; ruralgames.co.nz