Animal cruelty goes on paws

Joy Santiago / Multimedia Editor

Lauren Jewett

The Silhouette

In October 2010, Richmond, BC became the first city in Canada to ban the sale of dogs and cats in pet stores. In September, Toronto followed suit, taking steps to eliminate ‘puppy mills’ and reduce animal cruelty.

Puppy mills are breeding facilities that force large numbers of dogs to live in close quarters often without food, water or the care of a veterinarian. These dogs are then sold to pet stores, brokers and online vendors without any regulation or standards for care. When looking for a new pet, few people look beyond the glass cubicles and ask the questions necessary to ensure their new friend has gotten proper care.

Cats pose a different problem. They can have up to 30 kittens per year meaning that in most urban places, there are more cats and kittens than can be cared for. This creates a problem for cities, as animal control is ultimately the responsibility of the municipal government. This means that the city must pay to have animals collected, cared for, housed and eventually euthanized if they do not find foster care.

Hamilton is no exception to these problems. There is a large population of stray cats as well as poorly treated puppies. McMaster club PAWS @ Mac is working hard to make Hamilton the third Canadian city to pass legislation to ban the sale of cats and dogs. Formed in 2007, PAWS @ Mac holds various events to raise awareness and support the protection of livestock, domestic and wild animals.

Justine Schultes is a fourth-year political science and religious studies student who lives in the Westdale area. She has been with PAWS @ Mac since its creation and is currently the Public Relations and Volunteer Coordinator. She has been working with various groups around Hamilton to get the attention of City Hall and raise awareness about this issue so close to her heart.

In February of 2010, Justine’s family rescued a cat off of Newton Street. After some digging they discovered that their new pet was abandoned by a McMaster student who moved to the other side of campus and didn’t have room for the cat.

Justine explained that it’s difficult to be angry, when the main problem is education. Most people do not understand the problems behind animal cruelty, and also are not aware of their options.

The Hamilton SPCA, for example, offers foster programs for students to adopt cats for a year at a time as well as reduced rates for implanting ID chips and many other programs.

Puppy cruelty is a sensitive issue for Justine as she has two golden retrievers. One of her dogs was rescued from an abandoned home in Huntsville that was filled with puppies. Her dog was rescued by an organization called Golden Rescue, which is a breed-specific dog rescue program.

Breed-specific rescue groups are becoming increasingly popular because they are able to find foster care much faster than local humane societies while catering to dog lover’s specific breed preferences.

Unfortunately, Justine’s stories are very common and mild compared to what some animals go through. Greed and lack of awareness are to blame here.

Puppy mills are created to make fast cash, and the public is left in the dark. Recently, Petland pet stores have phased out the sale of cats and dogs, with the exception of animals from shelters.

The goal of Justine, PAWS @ Mac and many dedicated animal lovers is to permanently eliminate the sale of cats and dogs by the first week of this November.

There are many programs in place that currently support this effort. The City of Hamilton has a trap-neuter-release program for stray cats as well as a few spay/neuter programs for domestic cats.

It is important to know where your pets are coming from. When speaking with private breeders, make sure you go to see their facilities so you know how your dog was raised. Private breeders will often have their customers sign a “care contract” to protect the animal, and they’ll do a home investigation to make sure their dogs are going to a safe place.

PAWS @ Mac, in partnership with other animal rights groups around the city, is petitioning for the ban to take place.

Although there is no required minimum for signatures, Justine has set a personal goal to collect 2000. If you have questions regarding this issue, would like to get involved or are interested in signing the petition, PAWS @ Mac will be in the MUSC atrium by Williams on Thursday, Oct. 20. Blank petitions can also be found in their MSU Clubspace mailbox #1.

For more information on this issue and on raising healthy pets visit the Ontario SPCA website.