‘Never seen it like this’: Victoria animal shelter overrun with pets

A Victoria, B.C., animal shelter is hoping the public can help them find a new home for their growing needs.

The Victoria Humane Society is overrun with animals in need and they are bursting at the seams.

Penny Stone, executive director of the Victoria Humane Society said, “Years ago, when we first started the Humane Society, things were pretty much under control. We’d, you know, gotten everybody spayed and neutered. Everybody was kind of settling in.

“So you’d get animals in, but not in the numbers we’re getting in now. Since COVID, everything’s gone crazy. People can’t afford to keep their animals anymore.”

Stone said COVID also affected the ability to hold spay and neuter programs in smaller communities and now those animals have had babies and the populations are out of control.

“Exponentially, it’s just grown out of control,” she said.

“And I’ve been in animal welfare 20 years. I’ve never seen it like this.”

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Stone said the cost of living is also driving up pet food prices and forcing people to make difficult decisions.

“For the first time ever we’re turning animals away,” she said.

“We have about 45 dogs on our waitlist and probably almost double that in cats right now. Every day we get calls, every day we have to say no, which is really, really hard because the reality is, when we say no, we’re kind of the last-stop effort.

“So if we say no, then the outcome for the animal isn’t great.”

The Victoria Humane Society is now looking for a bigger facility so they can help more animals.

Ideally, Stone said, a place with some acreage would helpful.

“One of the biggest reasons we need a shelter is we need somewhere where these animals can come to, we can assess them because a lot of these animals are probably adoptable,” Stone said.

“They’re probably, we can probably rehab them. We just don’t know or have anywhere to do that at this time. So we can’t take them in, we can’t take an animal in that, you know, isn’t getting along with other dogs.”

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Stone said if anyone has, or knows of, a property that would suit their needs and the owner has been thinking of selling or moving, to contact them.

With the help of a generous donor who provided seed money, Stone said they want to purchase a property.

“It’s heartbreaking for us when animals are being brought in, but it is also heartbreaking for a lot of the people that come in,” Stone said.

“Some of them have no other choice, either. Financially, they can’t afford it. Their lifestyle has changed. They can’t take care of the animal anymore. So … there’s no judgment here. Lots of times it’s just really hard for them.”