Proud to Be Canadian - Congrats to Richmond, BC

From CTVBC.CA :

B.C. city passes Canada's first puppy sale ban

"The public will now get a chance to weigh in on the decision to ban retail puppy sales in suburban Vancouver, after three readings of the new bylaw were passed unanimously Tuesday night.

City councillors in Richmond, B.C., spent hours hearing from the public and debating the decision. The move, A Canadian first, is intended to curb the purchase of animals from puppy mills and stop people from impulsively buying animals.

Coun. Evelina Halsey-Brandt said a fourth reading, which finalizes the motion into law, will happen within the month. Pet store owners will then have until April 2011 to sell or remove all their puppies.

"People are going to learn that animals have the right to decency to have their health looked after," she told ctvbc.ca. "Now other cities will do the same thing."

Animal rights activists are trumpeting the council's decision, saying pet store puppies aren't awarded the same freedoms as dogs raised by reputable breeders.

"These pets that we're talking about that are shipped to pet stores they don't start out as pets, they're simply livestock," Rae Goodrich of the B.C. SPCA told council.

Marcie Moriarty, general manager of cruelty investigations for the B.C. SPCA, says the new bylaw is the first step in shutting down Canadian puppy mills.

"Any simple business model states that if you take away some of the demand, like these dogs, you'll have an impact on the production," she told ctvbc.ca."

This is great news and hopefully the rest of Canada will follow suit. Puppies belong in loving homes socializing with their mother and litter mates until going home with a family and more socialization can continue. Puppies do NOT belong in clear glass boxes in Pet Stores.

I would submit that many dogs are surrendered to shelters because they were victims of an impulse buyer. Many people are also aware of the poor conditions the puppies live in being stuck in a box all day and feel the need to 'rescue' the dog - an admirable reason, but sadly promotes the problem with the continued sales.

I believe greatly in personal freedoms, but I believe that the government must step in to regulate the care and condition of not only dogs but all animals. Those animals have no choice in how they are treated, and we must ensure that we as a society agree on how they should be treated and people not conforming to those rules held accountable.

There is plenty of money to be made in selling pet products without the need to sell animals. Sadly there are more than enough dogs in shelters that need homes. I always get sad when I see a new litter of puppies up at the SPCA shelter because that means X number of more older dogs that now won't get homes.

I know everyone loves a cute puppy, but please consider an older dog or adult dog if your considering adding a dog to your family. Puppies are a LOT of work, and while any new dog comes with responsibilities - an older dog can usually fit right into a new home without the need for housebreaking, bite training, puppy classes and all the critical socialization that must be done for a new puppy.

I applaud Richmond in taking this step (like most of Europe has already done by the way) in moving Canada into being a leader in companion animal care.