Animals seized from Gleichen property

Times Reporter   

 

On June 10 the Alberta SPCA removed 45 dogs and 20 cats from a foster home for Oops-a-Dazy Rescue and Sanctuary Society in Gleichen. The sanctuary does not have an actual shelter at this point and relies on a foster home system. 

“The animals were removed from the property because our officer, and a veterinarian in attendance with our officer, determined that the animals were in distress and needed to be removed,” said Roland Lines, communications manager for the Alberta SPCA.

In general terms Lines explained that distressed could mean sick, injured, malnourished or dehydrated. He would not comment specifically about the animals seized from Oops-a-Dazy and their condition. 

When animals are taken the owners have a 10-day period to comply with the requirements suggested by the SPCA. 

“They have an opportunity to claim them back if they want to. At a minimum they are required to pay for any veterinary care or boarding costs that we incur while the animals are in our custody, so that’s at minimum,” said Lines. 

“In addition to that, obviously we are not going to be returning animals to the same situation that we thought they needed to be removed from and it is very dependent on the particular circumstances. We would have conditions that an owner would have to meet before we would return animals to them.”

If the owner(s) does not reclaim the animals because they either choose not to or they don’t meet the conditions the animals become the property of the SPCA. 

“Then it is up to us to make a determination whether they be acceptable for adoption into new homes and so we would make that determination after the point in which an owner does not reclaim them,” said Lines. 

Christine Campbell, chairperson with the Oops-a-Dazy board of directors said the intention of the rescue group is to apply to have the animals returned, but to have the animals distributed to other foster homes. 

“The board has decided to not place any more animals into this foster home for the time being. We will complete the upgrades, and then reassess what additional processes and controls can be put in place.  For instance, we will likely be installing video surveillance to prevent unauthorized drop-off of animals, which was a significant factor in this situation,” said Campbell. 

“The animals were very well cared for, but the number of animals had become unmanageable. Although we had suspended animal intake a couple of months ago, animals continued to be left on the property. Our pleas for foster homes were not answered quickly enough.”

Campbell said that prior to the SPCA’s involvement the sanctuary had initiated a number of steps to make improvements to this foster home and to the foster home program in general. 

“Those included installation of additional fencing to separate dogs into smaller groups, an active search for more foster homes, and suspension of animal intake.  We were also in the process of reviewing our foster home program and looking for opportunities to make it even better,” said Campbell.

“We are seizing the opportunity to make significant upgrades at this foster home while there are no dogs or cats to work around. We have already made a big dent in the to do list and will continue to work very hard over the next few weeks to complete the recommendations advised by the Oops-a-Dazy Board of Directors as well as any recommendations made by the Alberta SPCA.”