For 13 years, Surrey, B.C., resident Darren Grant called an orange bearded dragon named Nacho his friend.
But after receiving an eviction notice recently, Grant has now had to surrender two fish tanks and Nacho as there won’t be any space for them in the 21-foot trailer he will soon call home.
“You know, that sucks. Really sucks,” he said.
He still has his cat named Bear, which he is thankful for, but the loss of Nacho is very hard.
“When I got the eviction notice, I basically sat on my couch for two weeks wondering what was going on,” Grant said. “I couldn’t comprehend what was happening.”
He tried to find housing with his pets but he couldn’t find anything available for his budget.
“It’s not right. I mean, I understand that times are tough for everyone. And, you know, the government taxes us through the roof, too. And so people are kind of forced to do these things.”
Mike Hopcraft, owner and operator of Wild Education said last year they took in 123 animals and so far this year they have already received 117.
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“It’s a big problem, especially since we’re the only reptile rescue in B.C. that’s taking these animals,” he told Global News.
“And right now, essentially we’re full. So we’re kind of like doubling up or we’re trying to find new spaces to build things. And it’s a problem.”
Hopcraft added that the majority of surrenders are due to the lack of available housing.
“The majority of animals that are coming in right now are because people can’t find a home to live that’s big enough to keep their animals,” he said. “A lot of people are having to downsize. There are some people that are becoming homeless because they can’t afford a place to live.”
Hopcraft said even Wild Education is looking for a new place to go because their rent is going up 500 per cent.
“The biggest thing, especially with reptiles too, is the long-term commitment. Most reptiles live at least 10 to 15 years. And I mean snakes and lizards, they can live 30 to 40 years. The tortoises live over a hundred years. So it’s a long-term commitment.”
Hopcraft said he invites anyone to come for a tour to learn more about caring for these animals and the work it requires.
Meghann Cant, manager of companion Animal Welfare Science & Policy at the BC SPCA said Grant’s story is an all-too-common one.
“There definitely is a lack of pet-friendly housing and we’re on track for seeing more animals surrendered for that reason this year than last year,” she told Global News. “And I would say for the last nearly decade or so, it’s actually been the top reason for the surrender of adult and senior animals to our shelters.”
Since 2014, Cant said more than 11,000 animals have been surrendered to the BC SPCA due to lack of available pet-friendly housing.
“It’s definitely a difficult decision for people because pets are their family members,” she said. “And so they’re doing it out of desperation when really it’s a choice between keeping their pet or homelessness.”
At the Union of B.C. Municipalities Convention in September, a resolution about pet-friendly housing was passed and the BC SPCA is now waiting for the government’s response.
“A legislative change is something that we would support, but we also think it’s really important to work together with landlords because I know that landlords are struggling with cost of living and stuff as well and we want to make sure that solutions that we find are that work for them as well,” Cant added.
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