The Ottawa Humane Society says animals are at risk because of a behind the scenes power play by the Ontario Society for the Protection of Animals.
“We really are concerned about the abuse of authority in this situation,” said Bruce Roney, Executive Director of the OHS.
The OSPCA abruptly halted the OHS’ ability to investigate animal cruelty.
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The OSPCA has about 30 affiliates, which are local humane societies that handle animal welfare in their area such as in Ottawa.
As members of the OSPCA, they were able to vote on major issues at the organization.
However, the OHS has a letter from the OSPCA that said all affiliates were briefly suspended.
A bylaw was changed, so the affiliates no longer had the same voting power.
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Then, at the same meeting, the OSPCA reinstated the affiliates.
“We found this to be improper, unethical and illegal,” said Roney.
Roney said when they objected to the decision, the OSPCA suspended their powers to investigate animal cruelty, stopping their ongoing investigations in their tracks.
“We actually had to push them into picking up some of our cases that were open so that they could act,” he said.
Roney said the OSPCA doesn’t have enough resources to handle the extra cases.
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The OHS isn’t alone, six others have now joined forces in a court challenge to get their voting rights restored.
The Oakville-Milton Humane Society is one of them.
“We were quiet shocked by how inappropriate this was,” said Kim Millan, Executive Director of the Oakville & Milton Humane Society, adding the work they did is important for animal welfare across the province.
“It’s really hard to speak for those who can’t speak for themselves when you don’t have a vote at the table.”
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The Humane Societies claim the OSPCA is effectively trying to take away any oversight, in order to have complete control over every decision. They have also requested an expedited court hearing on the issue.
“People have been pretty appalled, so we really feel it’s important that the court hear the same story,” said Roney.
The OSPCA refused interview requests from Global News.
In a statement, OSPCA spokeswoman Alison Cross wrote that reasons for their actions “will be made clear in due time.”
A court date has yet to be set.
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