Montreal SPCA says more families abandoning their pets for financial reasons

The Montreal SPCA says more people are abandoning their pets because they can’t afford to keep them.

No one wants to abandon their pet, but as the cost of living increases, many families find themselves having to make the tough decision.

“We have a bunch of issues that mostly always stem from the price of care for animals. It’s just too high,” said community programs manager Jaimie Saad.

According to Saad, 200 pets have been surrendered this year because of financial concerns.

“It could be moving, there could be vet bills, people can’t afford to see behaviourists anymore so the animal has issues they aren’t able to work on,” added Saad.

In an Instagram post on April 15, the Montreal SPCA wrote, “Every day, our staff sees families forced to abandon their animal companions. Financial concerns are the reason people give for abandonment.”

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“This is where our call to action is coming from,” said Saad.

“We’re trying to grow community support, to be a bit more preventative in our approach to help people before it gets too late and they have to surrender animal at our door,” she added.

Shelters are also seeing a lot of pandemic dogs returned for behavioural issues.

“Whether it be they’re not comfortable being alone because they’re not used to it or they’re not used to being around so many people because they spent a whole two years really isolated from the public,” said Saad.

But the SPCA says there are options out there for families who think they need to give up their pet or put it down. Organizations such as ‘Animo Pour la Vie’ provide financial assistance for those who need medical treatment for their pet.

“It’s a very hard part of being a veterinarian, but also it pushes us to find different ways of helping those clients who cannot afford those treatments,” said the organization’s president Dr. Sébastien Kfoury.

The foundation also helps pet owners who are experiencing homelessness.

“We try to help the pets of the people who really need them because for some of these people their animal is their only friend,” he added.

Animal organizations say they are always looking for donations.