Document type : article by Coalition Avenir Québec
Author: Coalition Avenir Québec
Preview: The Quebec Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, who is also the Minister responsible for the Centre-du-Québec region, André Lamontagne, and the Member of Parliament for Iberville, who holds the animal welfare brief for the government, Audrey Bogemans, have announced a national consultation intended to guide and prioritize actions to be taken in the realm of pet welfare, particularly for cats and dogs. [...] In order to increase the State's practical capacity to intervene for reasons of animal welfare, the Minister also announced the availability of the sum of $8 million, already provided for in the last budget, to hire at least 20 additional [staff to work on] animal welfare.
Given the increase in the number of pet adoptions seen in recent years, the government wishes to call on the services of animal welfare groups and organizations in order to meet the expectations of Quebecers on this matter.
The long-term objective is to improve the implementation of our laws and regulations and to reflect on concrete ways to be more effective in our actions while ensuring value for money. [...]Highlights
- According to the most recent survey by the Quebec Veterinary Medical Association, one in two Quebec households owns a pet. There are 2.1 million cats and 1.1 million dogs in the State.
- The Animal Welfare and Safety Act came into effect in December 2015. It aims to restrict uother small companion animalsceptable behaviors toward animals. Among its clauses, the law states that animals are recognized as sentient beings with biological needs.
- The Government of Quebec introduced the regulations on respect for the welfare and safety of domestic animals and equidae last August.
- It includes a ban on non-therapeutic surgery, including declawing, tail docking, ear trimming and devocalization, other than for medical reasons.
- In 2022-2023, the Quebec Ministère de l'Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l'Alimentation (MAPAQ) and its 6 agents received 4,226 complaints under the Animal Welfare and Safety Act. In the same year, inspectors carried out 6,732 inspections.
- In 2022-2023, 289 authorized individuals, including statutory agents, were tasked with enforcing the legal requirements ovetseen by the Animal Health and Food Inspection Sub-Department. Of this number, for animal welfare, 30 inspection resources are from MAPAQ and 34 from statutory bodies.
- The consultation will focus on licensing, the inspection process for animal care facilities and the concept of animal welfare liability.
From the Coalition Avenir Québec website
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