Blog

  • Heroes, Disabilities and the Power of Believing in Someone

    Helen Keller is one of my heroes. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Ms. Keller, she was an author, political activist, and lecturer in the early 20th century. She campaigned for women’s suffrage, labor rights, antimilitarism, and other progressive causes.

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  • Legislation with Claws

    New York State just joined most of Western Europe, the U.K. and Australia in banning the declawing of cats, except in the case of medical necessity. Bravo New York State! Sadly, so far the practice is legal in most Canadian jurisdictions.

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  • What You Don’t See

    Television didn’t show the grisly accident. The crowd didn’t see the inevitable result because organizers blocked the view with tarps. Nonetheless three beautiful horses died on June 14.

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  • It Can Happen to You

    July 15 is National Pet Fire Safety Day. It’s one of those days created to create a small buzz about an important issue. These days come and go throughout the year and they are a good cue for us at the OHS to get the word out about animal welfare issues. But for me, this year has been different

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  • Open Adoption: Saving More Lives

    We sent a dog home with his new family yesterday, obviously a very frequent occurrence at the Ottawa Humane Society. What wasn’t maybe as frequent was the long conversation we had with the prospective family about the dog’s tendency to destroy baseboards.

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  • Finally, Animals are Winning!

    Two important pieces of legislation have passed just before parliament rises for the summer and we couldn’t be happier.

    The first, Bill S-203, bans the importation, capture or ownership of cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) except for their rescue or rehabilitation

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  • Uncertainty for Animal Cruelty Investigations in Ontario: The Deadline Approaches

    In March, with just a few weeks’ notice, the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) announced it would no longer be enforcing animal cruelty investigations in Ontario and set a hard deadline of June 28. Since the OSPCA refused to extend the deadline until new legislation could be introduced, that deadline is fast approaching.

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  • Going the Distance for the Dogs

    Over the years, the Ottawa Humane Society has thankfully seen the admission of fewer dogs. Boxes of unwanted puppies are largely a thing of the past. But while fewer dogs need our care, the extent of the care they need has increased hugely.

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  • A Special Day at the Ottawa Humane Society

    If you had visited the OHS on Monday, you would have seen a lot of visitors here in our shelter. CTV was here, joined by four local radio stations: Majic 100, 580 CFRA, TSN 1200 and Pure Country 94. They were here for an event called A Day of Giving

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  • Animal Cruelty Investigations in Ontario: Stunning New Developments

    I have been reporting for the past while that in March, with just a few weeks’ notice, the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) announced it would no longer be enforcing animal cruelty investigations in Ontario and set a hard deadline for the end of June. I further reported that the OSPCA refused the province’s request to extend the work until new legislation could be introduced early next year.

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