The number of animals surrendered in British Columbia has been increasing in recent years due to a number of factors, including the rising cost of living, the inability to afford veterinary care, the pandemic and a housing crisis.
Animal shelters continue to grapple with post pandemic surrenders.
Animal shelters across the country are still dealing with the aftermath of ‘pandemic pets’ – animals that were purchased during the pandemic.
The Rabble
December 13, 2024
Animals are paying dearly with their lives all over the country. In British Columbia with a housing crisis, the rising costs of the basic necessities, the costs of veterinary care, the over-crowded shelters, rescues and sanctuaries, animals are perishing at an astonishing rate as they languish on death row.
In 2024, the provincial government gave the BC SPCA a $12 million payment to upgrade approximately four BC SPCA shelters despite the BC SPCA's the huge surplus of over $100 million from the public's generous donations for the care of animals which had not used for that purpose according to their 2023 audited financial statements. No new shelters have been built.
The many factors that support pet-friendly housing as a quick and easy solution to enable wanted animals to remain with their guardians are continously brushed aside by the recently re-appointed British Columbia Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon.
We are facing a pet care crisis in BC. Inadequate access to veterinary care is the number one animal welfare issue in Canada today. Far more animals suffer from a lack of veterinary care than from intentional acts of cruelty and neglect. An estimated 1.9 million pets live in poverty.
Paws For Hope Animal Foundation
Maple Ridge, B.C.
Cost of living
The rising cost of living has made it difficult for people to afford to feed and care for their pets in British Columbia. While many are financially struggling to meet the basics there isn't enough left over for their pet's care or unforeseen veterinary requirements. Many pet guardians sadly and hopelessly look for new homes for their animals or surrender them to rescues and shelters. Many of the surrenders cannot be housed by BC's rescues, shelters and sanctuaries due to overcrowding. With nowhere to turn to for animal guardians and their pets the outcome is often regretably the euthanasia of the animal.
The Pandemic
With people having to return to work or leave their 'home' offices which many had during the pandemic, there has been a rise in animal surrenders. Breeders who were trying to keep up with the demand for animals have had to surrender animals when that demand drastically dropped with the end of the pandemic. The importation of animal mill puppies began to thrive in British Columbia and many of those animals have not fared well in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Housing crisis and lack of pet-friendly accommodation
The single highest reason that people cannot continue to keep their pets is that there is an extreme shortage of pet-friendly housing. The housing crisis has only increased the animal crisis in British Columbia because there is nowhere for the animals to be housed. BC rescues, shelters and sanctuaries are over-crowded and some have incurred deep debt with raids by the BC SPCA and the resulting animal seizures.
Shelters and animal welfare organizations in B.C. say they are seeing a huge surge in the number of cats, dogs and other animals given up for adoption. They say owners are telling them that the rising cost of living means people just can’t make ends meet while feeding and caring for an animal.
Jesse Adams, executive director and co-founder, has been running Raincoast Dog Rescue Society on Vancouver Island for the last nine years. “In the last year, we have seen the largest amount of owner surrenders that we’ve ever seen,” he told Global News. “And in my 16 years of work and rescue it’s become very overwhelming for shelters and rescues to the point that some are now shutting down.”
'Increasing costs forcing families to surrender pets, B.C. rescue groups say'
Global News. September 7, 2023.
The BC Government's Priorities Exclude the Province's Animal Crisis
The BC government has refused to deal with the animal crisis and the single easiest solution to help the hundreds and thousands of animals on death row which is pet-friendly residential tenancies in British Columbia. BC Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon has dodged the animal guardian public repeatedly and continues to steadfastly refuse to make the necessary changes to the Residential Tenancy Act to ensure the public can live with their pets. The Minister refuses to answer inquiries preferring to turn them over to the executive director of BC Housing for response.
The Facts known to Housing Minister Kahlon
The Housing Minister has been hedging on implimenting the most viable and easiest solution for the thousands of animals that cannot be accommodated in shelters, rescues or sanctuaries who are already over-crowded by the post-pandemic increase in animals surrendered which is to make residential tenancies pet-friendly. As of late, the Minister relies on a Task Force that printed a Report in 2018, "BC Rental Housing Task Force Rental Housing Review Report" which consistently showed that the respondents (the BC public) wanted pet-friendly tenancies.
Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon is aware that:
🐾The BC Family Act recognizes animals as "companions"
On January 15, 2024, British Columbia made history with changes to the Family Law Act by bringing
specific provisions dealing with pet custody disputes.
Section 1 of the Family Law Act now recognizes animals as companions.
🐶Support of Major Stakeholders
BC's Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre (TRAC)
has confirmed support of BC SPGA's Pet-friendly housing campaign. Other supporters of pet-friendly housing
include Pets OK BC, Humane Canada, BC Landlord's Association ,
BC SPCA and the Canadian Public - 95% of who consider their animals as family.
🐱BC's Animal Population consists of over 50% of British Columbians
Over 2.5 million British Columbians (that's over half of the BC population) are animal and pet guardians.
🐱Ontario has provided nearly two decades as a testing ground for pet-friendly tenancies
Ontario has been a testing ground for pet friendly residential tenancies which started in 2006
and pet friendly residential tenancies have presented no unusual challenges in the almost twenty years since pet-friendly
residential tenancies inception.
🐾The BC SPGA Pet Owner Survey
BC SPGA results continue to unanimously support mandatory pet-friendly residential tenancies
for British Columbia.
🐾BC Housing Review Report
The Housing Minister relies on a pre-pandemic, "Rental Housing Review Report" published by the
BC Rental Housing Task Force in 2018.
In the Report, the BC public was consistently unanimous in its support of
pet-friendly housing, in fact the support was overwhelming.
The BC Rental Housing Task Force's "Rental Housing Review Report"
BC Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon is holding on to an increasingly thin argument by waving a Report that he thinks is reason enough to forget about pet-friendly residential tenancies in British Columbia. The "Rental Housing Review Report" that was printed in 2018 by the BC Rental Housing Task Force makes references repeatedly in the report to the public's desire to have residential pet-friendly tenancies in the Province. In 2018 the Report makes reference to responses that animal guardians were surrendering pets to the lack of accommodation. In 2024 the number #1 reason for animal surrenders is the inability to find or afford pet-friendly housing.
Below are some of the references from the Report:
section 4.3.4 - top comments as to regions was by far "Pets"
The highest number of respondents wanted pet-friendly housing which also
is the issue with the most support
in the Report.
page 13 - challenges for renters in regard to pets
Good Reasons To Impliment Animal Friendly Residential Tenancies
Legislation in BC such as the Family Act with its revisions and the Minister can draw on Ontario as a testing ground for pet friendly residential tenancies which started in 2006 and have presented no unusual challenges since. The Minister is resolute in not helping the animal guardian public and their furry family members knowingly of the province's Housing crisis and is aware that thousands of animals will suffer and their lives are or will be cruelly ended.
In a recent survey 95% of Canadians pets are considered "family" by their guardians. Canadians love their pets and have no help from the provincial government in a housing crisis that is seeing animals surrendered and destroyed at the most alarming rates. Landlords may add no-pet clauses to leases forcing people to surrender their pets in order to find a place to live.
If Housing Minister Kahlon continues with his non-supported stance on not helping animal guardians and their pets then he should do right by everyone and resign. There should be no need for the animal guardian public to put energies into protests and further voicing their need for pet-friendly residential housing with all of the other stresses faced in making ends meet.
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