The Penticton Indian Band is on a mission to save the South Okanagan’s native wild sheep population.
Dozens of bighorn sheep contracted a parasite resulting in deformation of their ears that led many to go deaf.
That means they become easy prey for predators which threatens the wild sheep population.
Students from the Penticton Indian Band Education Centre are involved in the daily feeding and monitoring of the animals.
The 18 infected bighorn sheep were recently captured on Penticton Indian Band land.
They suffer from what’s known as “psoroptic mange.”
The program is the brainchild of Penticton Indian Band Councillor Jonathan Kruger.
“We are concerned about our mountain sheep. The mountain sheep we have, their ears are all deformed from these mites. They’re becoming deaf,” he said.
The P.I.B teamed up with The University of Saskatchewan and the B.C. government to launch the treatment program, which is the first of its kind.
“As far as I understand this is the first time a herd of wild sheep have been put into captivity and tested for this drug,” said ecologist Cailyn Glasser.
Glasser said the disease is contracted from domestic sheep.
“This is as far north as the disease has been seen in Canada so the Okanagan Valley is a unique case. It’s the only place in Canada where we have this disease so far.”
The mission to save the sheep has become a community-wide endeavour.
The cost of the program is almost entirely funded through fundraising efforts and in-kind donations.
The program also relies heavily on volunteers like June Paul.
“It’s very painful so I really believe, I’m really thankful and grateful they are being treated because they are a part of this landscape, they have been and always will be,” Paul said.
The Penticton Indian Band said the trial program will last 12 months at which point the sheep will be released back into the wild.