Montreal SPCA launches campaign to help protect farm animals

The Montreal SPCA wants to make sure animal welfare is a priority for whichever party wins the provincial election this fall.

On Monday, the group launched a poster campaign in and around the city to make the general public aware of standard farm practices — including the castration of animals without anaesthetic.

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“The vast majority of animals raised for food have virtually no legal protection,” said Sophie Gaillard of the Montreal SPCA. “There was a law passed in 2015, and we also recognized animals as sentient beings in our Quebec Civil Code. However that does not help in any way farm animals that continue to be treated like mere commodities.”

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The SPCA says they would like to see the province adopt regulations governing the treatment of farm animals.

“The majority of animals raised for food are raised in an intensive confinement system, which means they’re raised in very small spaces. They’re barely able to turn around for the majority of their lives,” said Gaillard. “They undergo systematic mutilation without anesthesia, tail docking, castration, teeth clipping — you name it, we go through it.”

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The group plans to ask each of the four political parties about their plans regarding animal welfare, and they’re asking the public to do the same.

“We’re encouraging the general public to support our ask and put pressure on the new government,” said Gaillard, urging people to visit the group’s website in order to write to the four major parties.

“Ask them to commit to putting something in place so that at least a minimal level of welfare is guaranteed for farm animals in Quebec.”