If you’ve been watching local news, you likely have heard of the province’s recent and ongoing investigation into allegations of mistreatment of animals at a rescue in the Ottawa area.
The allegations are gut-wrenching and have an impact on everyone in the animal welfare community. There are many great rescue groups in Ottawa, and at the OHS, we are proud to partner with many of them to weave a safety net for Ottawa’s animals.
When I was young, our cat, Butter, had a medical emergency that panicked our family. After not eating for two days, we took her to the veterinarian and discovered she had swallowed a sewing needle. My father rushed her to an emergency veterinary clinic two towns over. One surgery and hours later, that emergency visit cost my parents $2,500 — money we didn’t have at the time. Through a series of budgeting choices and taking debt on a credit card, we found a way to cover the cost, but not without putting our family under financial strain.
As the owner of a geriatric Shih Tzu who demands to travel to most places by stroller, I sometimes — very briefly — forget about how much effort is needed to build wanted behaviours between a person and their dog.
It takes daily care and attention from a loving person to keep pets healthy and happy.
Want to know a fool-proof recipe for disaster? Doing things in a vacuum.
That’s why I want to give a huge thank you to everyone who filled out the Outdoor Cat Survey in August, to share their thoughts on outdoor cats and their welfare.
My youngest kid recently left for university, and we hadn’t realized the hole she was leaving in our family’s pet’s schedule. Given where I work, you might have thought that I would be more prepared – but it has taken us a few pee puddles to figure out how best to support our old doggie, Dixie, who isn’t used to being left alone for long.
After barking at the torch and putting on a howling good performance during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Dog-lympics, Snoop Dog and Celine Diog have confirmed their next stop will be in Canada’s capital.
Buddy and Echo are two dogs who have both been waiting for more than 100 days for their forever home. They were here in the spring when kitten season hit a fevered pitch, and it looks like they may still be at the OHS in the fall when many of the kittens will have already gone home.
Yesterday, we hosted our first-ever pop-up emergency pet food bank in partnership with our friends at the Sandy Hill Community Health Centre. Stationed right outside the centre, we served about 80 families and handed out more than 450 lbs of pet food in only three hours. Our team of three – a veterinary technician, an outreach coordinator, and a devoted...
Wildlife are not pets. Last month, Ottawa by-law discovered a raccoon named Diesel that was being kept as a pet in an apartment. Officers brought the raccoon to the OHS and we transferred him to Holly’s Haven Wildlife Rescue for rehabilitation. Sadly, many wild animals that have spent even limited time being kept captive are never able to adapt to living in the wild again.
We’re no strangers to the countless animals in Ottawa who need shelter and care each summer, but the homeless cat issue is getting bigger. Homeless cat overpopulation is an urgent struggle felt throughout North America — last weekend alone, we took in close to 90 cats, including 40 kittens transferred from another animal welfare organization struggling with capacity. After a few quiet pandemic years and decades of declining numbers of homeless cats, what’s happening?
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