Workers returning to the office post-pandemic, financial struggles, and more are contributing to an overflow of dogs at Winnipeg’s animal shelters, says the general manager of the city’s Animal Services agency.
Leland Gordon told 680 CJOB’s The Start that many shelters and rescues are feeling the crunch — some with months-long waiting lists to accept surrendered pets.
“We’re also seeing a lot of people who have been struggling for some time financially — even before the pandemic,” Gordon said.
“We’re empathetic, of course … but they’ve gone out, and they’ve gotten dogs and they can’t meet the basic requirements of those dogs. And those dogs are ending up being surrendered or as strays running the streets with no licences.”
Although the city does have a program to help low-income residents get essential pet costs covered, Gordon said it’s important for potential pet owners to ask themselves the hard questions before taking the plunge and adopting an animal.
“Can I take care of myself financially, and the added expenses of a dog or cat, including good food, veterinary care, training… can I do those things?
“Do I have a home — do I have a stable home where I live where I can give a dog or cat a long-term home?”
Gordon said many dogs picked up by Animal Services aren’t spayed or neutered, which can compound the problem, as more strays continue to be born.
Most of the dogs the agency receives that aren’t fixed come from backyard breeders, accidental litters, or from northern and rural communities — although the city’s shelters are so jam-packed that northern rescue efforts — once a major source of adoptable animals — aren’t as feasible as they used to be.
“In the olden days, we used to like to take those northern dogs, to help those northern communities,” he said. “We used to take about 100 a year. Now, because we’re so full all the time, we’re probably taking 10 a year — if we’re lucky — to help, because there are so many dogs people are wanting to surrender.”
Lindsay Gillanders with Manitoba Underdogs Rescue says her organization is also overwhelmed with surrenders, and they continue to play catch-up on efforts at reducing stray populations up north as well — especially with two or three years where they couldn’t offer spay and neuter clinics due to the pandemic.
“We’re trying to bring back our spay and neuter clinics in the remote and rural communities to try to work with them to reduce the pet populations, but again, it all depends on funds,” Gillanders said.
“We subsidize the cost of those surgeries oftentimes, so we need the donations and we need the bodies to be able to go and do that.”
Gillanders says it’s heartbreaking every time the volunteer-driven Underdogs has to turn down taking in a dog because they simply have no room.
“It is the unwanted and the uncared-for animals, but it’s also people that are now realizing they made a mistake and trying to do the right thing for the animal.
“It’s so difficult on our volunteers that we just can’t help.
“We’re 100 per cent foster-home based as well, so we need a place the animals can go. As long as we’ve got foster homes and we’ve got money coming in, we can help, but we’re struggling with both of those things right now.”