Earlier this year, staff with Docupet, a company hired by the City of Kingston to license the city’s domestic animals, were accused of trespassing on private property and peering into people’s homes all to fill out its database of pet owners.
On Tuesday, two Kingston residents, Scott Carey and Kalee De France took their concerns about the project to Kingston City Council.
“It’s one thing to go up to a door and put a notification or a flyer in someone’s mailbox,” Carey said in an interview with CKWS TV Wednesday. “It’s completely different to be sent to homes and have to listen carefully and look around.”
The company claims none of its staff were directed to do that, and that it was likely someone impersonating their employees.
Kalee De France says she experienced this type of behaviour first hand.
“I saw the young woman come up to my front porch and look into my window and then leave a door hanger,” De France said to council on Tuesday.
She added she didn’t think much of the situation until a few weeks later, when she received a letter from the City of Kingston threatening a fine if she didn’t register her dog. De France also told council the dog observed by the Docupet employee that day was a friend’s who happened to be visiting at the time.
The company’s mission statement aims to take the hassle and inconvenience out of licensing your pets.
Despite concerns from residents, Docupet — which operates in nearly two dozen cities across Canada — says its performance in Kingston has exceeded expectations.
“In Kingston, we’ve increased the compliance rate from 8 to 13 per cent,” Docupet CEO, Grant Goodwin told council Tuesday. “And to the most recent reporting date last month, we’ve licensed 7,066 pets.”
CKWS News reached out to the City to comment on these claims, but no one was made available.
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