Animal advocates call for better regulations due to growing number seizures in Manitoba
Posted August 20, 2024 4:26 pm.
Last Updated August 20, 2024 8:01 pm.
Earlier this month, Carlos and Cassidy were amongst the 137 dogs seized from a home north of Winnipeg, and are now the first group up for adoption at the Winnipeg Humane Society (WHS).
But while the two pups are one step closer to finding their forever home, questions remain over what steps need to be taken to put a halt to the growing number of dogs seized under the Animal Care Act, which has seen a 122 per cent increase in just the past year.
“It is out of control, a lot of it is people out for profit, backyard breeding. We encourage people to adopt,” said Andrew Clarke, the director of investigations & emergency response at WHS.
RELATED:
- More than 130 dogs living in poor conditions seized from home north of Winnipeg
- Some of the 130 dogs seized from home north of Winnipeg now up for adoption
“Between the province and ourselves, the animals we are seeing is the mid-500s to 580 to 590 but as I said we are already at 681 and we are just in August.”
A sentiment echoed by Humane Society CEO Jessica Miller, who identified backyard breeders as one of the biggest factors that is leading to what she describes as an unsustainable and sad situation.
At the time hopeful, they could work with the province to strengthen licensing regulations on breeders, regulations that have largely gone un-enforced since 2013.
“The fact that, that law has been ignored for 12 years is so incredibly frustrating,” said Miller.
The Director of Legal Advocacy for Animal Justice, Kaitlyn Mitchell says re-introducing licensing for breeders is essential to ensure the existing laws are properly enforced.
“You can have the best standards in the world but if you don’t where the breeders are there is really no way to oversee them and make sure they are being followed so we really need to start enforcing our licensing regime and some strong legal standards to protect animals,” explained Mitchell.
After having to endure so much, adoption manager Daphnee Hee says many of the dogs are on the shyer side and will be looking for prospective owners with patience and a lot of love.
“So hopefully as they continue to proceed towards adoptions, we will get to see more layers of personality so far the four we have up for adoption are quiet shy,” said Hee.
CityNews reached out to the province for an interview to discuss the need for licensing for breeders but our request was denied due to the ongoing investigation.
