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N.B. animal protection agency launches aid for low-income pet owners
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New Brunswick's animal protection agency hopes a new program to boost
access to spay and neuter surgeries will lighten the load for shelters
and veterinarians.
The New Brunswick SPCA's Happy Tails Fund launched this week, with
funding from the late June Hooper and the province.
Executive director Lesley Rogers said it's designed for low-income pet
families who might be struggling to access basic veterinary care.
She said financial pressures during the pandemic, followed by record-
breaking inflation, have left a growing number of pet owners in need
of support.
_**WATCH | How the SPCA hopes to keep pets out of crowded shelters:**_
### Animal protection group wants to boost access to vet care
Pet owners in a difficult financial situation can now get assistance
for neuter or spay surgery, along with basic vaccines. New Brunswick
SPCA executive director Lesley Rogers says the program will keep pets
with their families and reduce shelter crowding.
"Whether they're having difficulty finding pet-friendly housing, or
you know, they've lost their job or not working for health reasons,
there's reasons why people get in a position and they need help," she
said. "That's the group we want to help out."
Rogers said more access to spay and neuter surgeries in particular
will eventually mean fewer animals ending up in shelters, and fewer
owners with too many animals to care for.
Dr. Sara Pridham's clinic, Stoneybrook Veterinary Services, is located
near Saint John. (Submitted by Sara Pridham)
Dr. Sara Pridham said the demand for that surgery is high — she's
already busy with animals referred to her clinic, Stoneybrook
Veterinary Services, through the program.
Her clinic is one of four offering care through the program —
alongside Moncton Veterinary Walk-in and Urgent Care, Greater Saint
John Veterinary Walk-in and Urgent Care, and Woodstock Veterinary
Clinic.
"We get calls pretty much daily from people asking if we offer low-
cost spay and neuters," she told CBC News.
"We've been open about 10 years here, and we have seen a growing need
for, basically population control ... there's so many cats and so few
homes."
The New Brunswick SPCA hopes its new program will reduce the number of
unwanted pets in the shelter system. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
That's a reality playing out on the ground for shelters in several
locations across the province.
"We have more cats in the shelter than we have in probably 10-plus
years," said Olivia Cannatella, who is with the Oromocto and Area
SPCA. "It's been very, very overwhelming ... we're pretty much to the
point that unless we have [animals] going out, we aren't able to take
any in right now."
It's a similar story at the Miramichi SPCA, according to executive
director Jennifer Arseneault.
One of the cats staying in the full shelter at the Oromocto and Area
SPCA. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
"Our kitten season kind of started earlier this year, they're just
coming in droves," she said, adding the shelter is also struggling
financially.
"In 17 years that I've been here, this is the closest we've come to
shutting our doors … it's hard, you know, mentally it's exhausting
just trying to scrounge by every month and knowing that you have to
turn animals away."
Cannatella describes turning animals away from the shelter as
"emotionally taxing" for staff.
The Oromocto and Area SPCA is housing more cats now than it has in the
past 10 years, according to Olivia Cannatella. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
That situation has also led to veterinarians "leaving the profession
in droves," Pridham said.
"We do have to turn people away pretty much every day. Like five or 10
people every single day. That again is just because the need is so
great, and care has become so much more expensive over the years," she
said.
"People getting mad that they can't afford care for their animals,
unfortunately that is often directed at the veterinarian. And there's
only so much we can do, and still be able to pay our own bills."
Executive director Lesley Rogers hopes to avoid situations where
owners must surrender an animal because they can't afford necessary
veterinary care. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
Rogers said the program's second phase, to come later this year, will
provide coverage for emergency vet care.
Typically, Rogers said, if someone can't afford life-saving surgery
for their pet, they can surrender it to the SPCA so the procedure is
covered by the organization, but the animal is then re-homed.
"That doesn't seem right to us," she said. "We want to be able to help
out."
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