Over 2.5 million British Columbians (that's over half of the BC population) are animal and pet guardians. Yet pet owners have no rights or protection. There is no legislation which assists or protects the lives of ourselves and the animals in our care.

The effects of animal policing in BC currently overseen by the BC SPCA are devastating. Many struggling animal famillies have animals seized because financially they are unable to cope. Many thousands of those animals are re-sold to strangers or euthanized. The victims are the animals and their beloveds. One of the reasons that this is happening is because legislatively animal guardians have no rights and no protection.

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. And British Columbia is no different.
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The BC SPGA members advocate for change. We know that the burdens of guardians and animals would be lifted with access to pet-friendly residential tenancy housing. In fact, even more domestic animals living desperate lives in captivity could find forever loving homes if residential tenancies were pet friendly since the public could adopt with the ease of knowing that the animal would be able to lawfully reside with their new guardians.

The BC SPGA is also advocating for legislation that will provide animal guardians with protections and rights with proposed legislation, The BC Animal Guardian Act.

See how the BC SPGA works together with BC Legislators:

• Proud to represent BC Animal Guardians and Their Pets
• Advocating For Better Lives for Animal Guardians and Their Pets
• Member funded, non-profit, incorporated Society as One Voice in Unity
• BC SPGA advocates overall good health and wellbeing by empowering BC Guardians and Their Animals

BC Pet Friendly Residential Tenancies

In British Columbia landlords are within their rights under the Residential Tenancy Act to prohibit pets in their rental units. BCers are paying higher rents and there are fewer vacancies than ever before yet tenants have no rights to include their furry family members in their residential tenancies. This has led to the destruction of many thousands of animals all over the Province because there simply is nowhere to put them.

Rescues are over-crowded, raided by the BC SPCA animal police for taking in more animals than their premises can hold in the desperation and the animals are the true victims suffering euthanization of healthy pets whose lives are cruelly ended because our lawmakers refuse to put animal famillies first.

Despite having Ontario as a testing ground for pet friendly residential tenancies since 2006 with no unusual challenges, BC stands by blindly knowing that thousands of animals will suffer and their lives ended.

The BC SPGA Pet Owner Survey results unanimously support mandatory pet-friendly residential tenancies for British Columbia.

We aim to make accessibility for guardians with pets available in BC residential tenancies. To this extent, we have made suggested revisions to the BC Residential Tenancy Act, are in communications with the provincial government and other stakeholders.

BC SPGA urges the BC public to keep up the political pressure for pet-friendly housing

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.

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Our animals deserve lives that are the best that they can be.

BC Animal Guardian Act

The Prevention Of Cruelty To Animals Act was drafted and implimented by the BC legislators for the BC SPCA. The Act essentially professes to help animals in distress by blaming their caretakers. This results in thousands of pets seized from families and loved ones that want them and may be struggling with basic needs and a lack of financial resources.

The biggest and richest animal charity in British Columbia, the BC SPCA, is running a surplus of over $100 million because the public donates graciously in the belief that their donations will be used for the care of animals. The surplus from the public's generous donations for the care of animals is sitting in funding reserves while the BC SPCA animal police unit raids under-funded no-kill rescues and sanctuaries and enters BC guardians homes routinely to seize wanted animals. None of the surplus is used for the purpose that it is given when languishing in funding reserves.

BC SPCA has $104.0m in funding reserves, of which $2.1m is donor endowed.

In F2023, BC SPCA paid $602k to external fundraisers to raise $795k in donations.

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Statistically, seized animals are not returned to their guardians according to the outcomes in BC's Courts and the animal custody Tribunal (BCFIRB) where less than a dozen animal guardians historically in the combined legal forums have had less than a dozen animal claims succeed and their animals returned. This would suggest that either BCers are a cruel population towards animals or more likely, animal policing is thriving with sky high profits exploiting seized animals in media campaigns.

There are several issues to consider for BC's animal guardians.

• There is no legislation protecting animal guardians.
• Animal guardians have no rights.
• Animal guardians pay all of the costs for seized pets whether the family or loved ones ever see the animal(s) again or not.
• Courts and the Tribunal rarely favor the animal guardian. Less than a dozen claims historically have succeeded for the animals guardian in the Courts and Tribunal.
• Should a claim be successful (ie the animal(s) were found to be wrongfully seized) the animal guardian is responsible for the BC SPCA costs and their own which are often too high for the animal guardian to pay resulting in the loss of the animals to the BC SPCA again.
• Hiring a lawyer is expensive in animal seizure claims. Since there is no legislation to protect animal guardians a lawyer is without a basic rights and protection legislation to rely on or refer to.

Making laws are necessary where there exists a need for justice and fairness. The BC SPGA proposes that our Position Statements provide a foundation in which to work from in implimenting a BC Animal Guardian Act :

BC SPGA Position Statements on ANIMAL POLICING

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The Right To Consult With A Veterinarian

An animal guardian has the right to obtain a veterinarian and have the animal(s) examined and treated by the veterinarian prior to any animal seizure. If the animal guardian’s veterinarian provides treatment, if necessary, the animal cruelty investigation is concluded.

Protection From Animal Seizures

BC Animal guardians with sick, injured or elderly animal(s) in treatment with veterinarian(s) are protected from animal seizures and prosecution.

The Right To Avail Of BC SPCA Resources

An animal guardian has the right to request, accept and use BC SPCA resources free of charge to prevent an animal(s) seizure and the BC SPCA must use its resources accordingly.

Solutions

In a province like BC where animal rescues are over-crowded, the majority of the population is struggling with basic survival requirements such as accommodation and food costs, there is no surplus such as savings for emergencies for the majority of animal Guardians to draw on if a pet suddenly becomes sick or needs veterinary care, it makes sense to enact legislation that empowers the animal guardian and provides access to charities such as the BC SPCA for relief where needed.

In addition, the BC Animal Guardian Act proposes to define animals as "sentient beings".

Your BC SPGA Membership or donation will help BC pets to stay in the arms of the people who love them.