GORE BAY—While a government official has confirmed that Animal Welfare Services performed an inspection of an alleged puppy mill and no concerns were identified, a Gore Bay woman is still unsure that she didn’t recently deal with the operator of a puppy mill on Manitoulin Island.
“The ministry can confirm that Animal Welfare Services performed an inspection at an alleged puppy mill on Manitoulin Island. No animal welfare concerns were identified during this inspection and the matter is considered closed,” Andrew Morrison, spokesperson for the Ministry of the Solicitor General, informed The Expositor.
“I certainly don’t want to do this again, I hope we never have to go through this type of situation again,” said Jocelyn Morrison of Gore Bay. “I will be watching to see what they do. I just hope people step up and if they see what they feel may be a puppy mill, that they report it.”
Ms. Morrison explained that within the week prior to Christmas, “we responded to an advertisement for dogs available. When we got to the place where the dogs were, I suspected right off the bat that it was a puppy mill.” She and her husband Bruce Larocque had gone to a location to see the dogs, that were in a barn. “I didn’t get a photograph of the inside of the barn or the dogs, but there were 20 labradoodle or goldendoodles, that were in a crate and they were a mess. Their fur was matted with feces, lice, fleas, some had open sores and bloated bellies. I didn’t even know they had lice until we had a veterinarian check and clean them up. They had to be treated twice.”
Ms. Morrison pointed out she and her husband already have a male dog who is 14 years old along with a three-year-old adult female dog that they adopted in September from a dog rescue centre in Iroquois Falls. “When I asked the man who had the puppies (in the location on Manitoulin Island) if he was having problems selling the puppies, he said ‘yes.’ He then asked if we wanted them, and we said ‘yes.’ So, we piled all 20 puppies into our SUV and drove home.”
The couple visited the man within a day after the first visit as they were worried about the adult dogs. “We asked what he was going to do with the rest of the adult dogs he had. The man said he would be breeding them, and I said we would like them,” said Ms. Morrison. “This time he said he wanted money for them.” The couple paid $170 for the two adult female dogs.”
“Yes, this was at a location on the Island, and I know or have heard of other dog breeders on the Island. Maybe they take care of their dogs better. This man certainly did not,” stated Ms. Morrison. She noted half of the puppies the couple purchased have been adopted out to good homes. “I’m trying to keep the puppies in homes in the North, but I am getting calls from people in southern Ontario.” She pointed out the couple are keeping the two older puppies.
“We are not a rescue group,” stated Ms. Morrison. “But in this situation, we just couldn’t turn away from the puppies and the situation they were in.”
“When we called the provincial Animal Welfare Services, “they said that an investigator had carried out an inspection, and the case was closed. The inspector I talked to said she had done an investigation but there was nothing she could do. She didn’t even ask for the pictures of the puppies when we first got them or talked to the veterinarians as to what they saw or had to do for the puppies. I don’t think it is a secret that there are puppy mills around,” said Ms. Morrison. “I would just say that people shouldn’t buy animals from a breeder, they should buy them from an animal rescue group. And if they have any concerns about the care, or lack of care these animals are being provided, to report these concerns.”
“We took the puppies to a veterinarian and it took them several days to clean up and deworm the dogs,” said Ms. Morrison who noted, “some of the dogs’ backs had to be shaved because there was so much feces stuck to their fur.”
“I know of four breeders on the Island and our veterinarian said some are very good and bring in these animals to get all their shots and have the animals spayed/neutered,” said Ms. Morrison. She pointed out she and her husband are still looking for homes for the other 10 puppies they still have. I am now talking to potential adopters first they have to agree that they will have the dogs spayed or neutered.”
The veterinarian who treated the puppies gave the couple the phone number to the Animal Welfare Services, and said they would issue a report if the inspector required it. However, it was never requested from the inspector, said Ms. Morrison.
Mr. Morrison told the Expositor, “A highly trained team of over 100 provincial inspectors, located across Ontario, enforce the provincial animal welfare services act (PAWS Act). Some specialize in agriculture, zoos, aquariums and equines. Inspectors across Northern Ontario serve Manitoulin Island.”
“Since January 2020, when AWS was established, over 126,700 calls to the Ontario Animal Protection Call Centre (OAPCC) have been received, resulting in over 58,500 inspections or investigations province-
wide. Over 7,000 orders have been issued and over 500 charges have been laid. During this time, over 4,200 animals were removed from situations negatively impacting their welfare,” wrote Mr. Morrison.
“When the OAPCC receives calls regarding alleged incidents of animal distress and/or violations of the PAWS Act, the call centre gathers relevant information in order to appropriately triage the call for response. Based on the location and nature of the incident, each call is immediately directed to the appropriate enforcement agency, which could be AWS, a local police service or community organization. Where possible, AWS addresses the most urgent call on the same day, however, in some cases, it may take longer to respond due to the time of day or because an inspector is responding to other urgent matters,” wrote Mr. Morrison.
Mr. Morrison added, “if someone in Ontario believes standards of care are not being met or an animal is in distress, being abused or neglected, they should call the OAPCC at 1-833-9ANIMAL or 1-833-926-4625. Ontarians should call 911 in an emergency when any life, human or animal, is in immediate danger, such as an animal left unattended in a hot or cold vehicle.”
In this local case, the puppies had already been removed so there wasn’t an immediate danger, but Ms. Morrison said the inspector did not come to see the puppies or ask to see the pictures of them when they were first picked up by the Gore Bay couple.
