Reaching Out

Grand Opening of the

Victoria Park Adoption Centre

Bill 50: Flawed

Raise your voice for the animals Page 8

Canadian Publications Agreement Number 40659555

 Mission Statement: To promote the humane care and protection of all animals and to prevent cruelty and suffering

Summer 2008 Issue

Cover Stories The Toronto Humane Society
11 River St., Toronto ON, M5A 4C2
Making History 24 Tel: 416.392.2273 Fax: 416.392.9978
Bill 50: Flawed 8 email: info@torontohumanesociety.com
website: www.torontohumanesociety.com
Features Canadian Charitable Registration Number 11925 9513 RR0001

Saving Cyrus; Saving Tre 3 Society Officers

New Homes Tim Trow, President

Gimme Shelter 4 Bob Hambley, Secretary-Treasurer

Joan Milne, Vice-President
Sweet and Low 5 Sandi Hudson, Vice-President
Gifts 14 Carol Lupovich, Vice-President
Rescue 15 Board of Directors
Memberships 18 Stephen Dooley Carol Lupovich
Bob Hambley Patricia McIlhone
Shelter Sandi Hudson Joan Milne
Kitten Nursery 6 Pam Inglis Laurie Overton
Fields of Green 20 Gino Innamorato Delores Qasim
Alan Johnson Tim Trow
Small Domestics and Birds 30
Valerie Jones Bud Walters
Wildlife 33
Animaltalk is printed on recycled paper and
Marginalia distributed free of charge to approximately
50,000 Society donors and members.
Health 32
Safety Rating 16 ISSN 1192-4861

Marlies Put “Fun” in Fundraising 17

Emergency Response, 17
Amazing Result
Columns
Fighting Like Cats and Dogs - 9
Peter Worthington
It’s a Dogs Life and Death - 22
Ken Gallinger
Gifted - 34
Kelly

2 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
Saving Cyrus; Saving Tre
Cyrus has made a remarkable recovery and lives
with a family who love him. As for Tre...

HE’S BACK!!!
Agent Smith Reinstated, Dec 8, 2007.
“It’s your e-mails and support that did it. Thank you.” - Tre Smith
Animaltalk
Summer 2008
3
 New Homes

Gimme Shelter
Volunteer dog walker takes home the tough cases
nne, a volunteer dog
A walker with the THS since
April 2005, created a bit of a family
reunion when she visited the
shelter with a pair of hard-to-adopt
dogs she has recently given a home
to. Niki, a big, bold, beautiful 13-
year-old Rottweiler/Shepherd cross
who found refuge at the THS after
her owner fell ill, has been with
Anne since Easter, 2008. Joey, a
Boston Terrier, has shared Anne’s
home since September, 2007. This
odd couple joins the ranks of four
other senior dogs who have spent
their final days with Anne: Roger,
Toby, Bessie and Pippi. “I can’t
stand the thought of older, ill dogs
spending their last days without a
home, so I make room for them
in my home,” explains Anne.
While the previous dogs spent
their final months with Anne,
these two may become more
permanent fixtures. Joey, who
suffers from immune system
issues, is thriving after the THS
head vet Dr. Steve Sheridan
established the right balance of
medication and nutrition. And
Niki, while enduring the sort of
joint problems typical of large
breed dogs, is a friendly puppy at
heart and is in excellent health.
Plus the two of them get along
as if they’ve been together for
ever, which is a perfect recipe
for a long, healthy life.
Anne, flanked by Niki (left) and Joey on a recent visit to the THS.

4 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 New Homes

Sweet and low

weet Pea arrived on a Saturday
S morning in April, left in a cardboard box
in the driveway of the THS. She was terrified,
undernourished, blind, deaf, and had a small
but obvious tumor in her belly. The folks in the
THS Clinic cared for her and then we took her
on Animal House Calls (A weekly program on
CP24, hosted by animal-lover Ann Rohmer)
to highlight her story. Next thing we knew
Annette and Hank were in the lobby of the
THS signing the adoption papers. “We saw
her on Animal House Calls,” says Annette,
“and I couldn’t stop crying: That sweet little
girl deserves to be pampered.”
Annette and Frank with Sweet Pea.

Retrofits
hese are shots of our new elevator, a gift from the Trillium Foundation. The foundation also enabled us to build a
T first-ever washroom for visitors and staff with special needs.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
5
 Kitten Nursery

KITTENS!!!
Every spring hundreds of volunteers mobilize to help us deal with the
massive influx of pregnant cats and newborn kittens. By the time the little
felines make it into our adoption program, they look healthy, happy and
adorable. But take our word for it, the THS Kitten Nursery is one of the
busiest and most demanding places you’ll ever visit. By the time the main
kitten rush winds down, hundreds of kittens will have been born, weaned,
medically treated and adopted by loving families. Phew!

6 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
Kitten Nursery

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
7
 Bill 50: Flawed
Raise Your Voice for the Animals
TIM TROW, President
Dear Reader:
Bill 50, Provincial Animal
Welfare Act, 2008, must be
changed because section 6 is
likely to lead to our being
stripped of our name and
identity of 121 years.
Fortunately, section 6 is
superfluous to animal
protection, the real intent of
the Bill. Nothing will be
lost if it is gone from the Bill
and I urge you to ask your
MPP to vote to remove it.
The Legislature debated
Bill 50 off and on for about
a week in June and has
now prorogued for the
summer. The good news is
that our letters and emails
have led to Bill 50 being
referred to legislative
committee for review.
The upcoming committee
hearing is only a reprieve and
as of today section 6 remains.
But the hearing presents an
8 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
opportunity to avert the
injustice of having our name
and identity stripped from
us. I urge you to attend the
Committee hearing the week
of July 21-25.
People nowadays may not
realize that in 1887 The
Toronto Humane Society was
the first organization in
Canada to call itself “humane
society”. All others chose
“society for the protection of
animals”. (Animal Welfare
and Humane Values, Preece
& Chamberlain, 1995,
Wilfred Laurier University
Press, p. 35)
The reason for section 6 is
possible confusion, but for
121 years we have been
known as The Toronto
Humane Society
headquartered in Toronto as
distinct from the Ontario
Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals
headquartered in
Newmarket. In all that time,
we have never been
confused with one another.
But there will be certain
dislocation and loss of
opportunities for animals if
section 6 becomes law and
our name is stripped away.
Animals will be at risk
because people needing
shelter or hospitalization for removed from Bill 50.
animals won’t know where The Minister doesn’t
to find it. Our income, want to leave animals with
dependent 100% on nowhere to go. But the risk
donations, will plummet is real. If enacted, it
because it comes from name appears section 6 will force
recognition and faith in our The Toronto Humane
strong history of community Society to choose between
service. If we must cut staff either being stripped of our
and services we will become name, or abandoning our
smaller and weaker, less Victoria Park Adoption
influential, and less able to Centre and stopping our
speak out powerfully against cruelty police, veterinarians,
animal abuse. adoption staff, rescue
Phone calls, letters and officers, and volunteers
emails – together with our from serving Etobicoke,
presence at Committee -- will North York or Scarborough.
convince Minister Bartolucci It’s a Catch-22 the
that section 6 ought to be animals can’t afford.
Here’s how to speak for those who
cannot speak for themselves. Please:
• Email, (telephone or write) your MPP at Queen’s Park
and copy Premier McGuinty, Minister Bartolucci and The
Toronto Humane Society. Our information line will give
you your MPP’s email and telephone number.
Your MPP:
dmcguinty@mpp.co@liberal.ola.org
rbartolucci.mpp@liberal.ola.org
webmaster@torontohumanesociety.com
and/or
• Attend the Standing Committee on Justice Policy. We
will post the exact date and time on the website
when it is announced.
For more Information
On Bill 50 and MPP email addresses and telephone
numbers, please visit www.torontohumanesociety.com
or call 416-392-2273 Ext. 2117 or 2765 or 2123

Fighting like cats and dogs
Animal welfare groups at odds over who
may use “Humane Society”
PETER WORTHINGTON
argely unnoticed in Bill
L 50 is the revision of
Section 10 in the old act that
says no society, association
or group "established after
the 30th day of May, 1955,"
shall function as an animal
welfare or cruelty prevention
organization" unless it is
ncorporated and becomes
affiliated" with what then
was the Ontario Humane
Society and is now renamed
the Ontario Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals (OSPCA).
Thus, animal welfare
bodies in business prior to
1955, seemed to escape
domination by the OSPCA,
which has been rent
asunder in recent years by
controversy, weak finances,
mass resignations, internal
feuds, etc.
Section 10 in the new act
is revised to say only groups
affiliated with the OSPCA
shall "use the name
'humane society' ... or 'spca'
or the equivalent of any of
those names ... Giving the
OSPCA control over the
name "humane society"
(which it has dropped and
no longer uses) has caused
alarm among some, who
believe it gives the OSPCA
undue power to threaten
and intimidate.
The Toronto Humane
Society (THS) has feuded
over the years with the
OSPCA. Although it has
been in existence for 121
years and is a beloved
Toronto institution, the
THS feels vulnerable with
this amended clause.
"It means that if
we break our affiliation
with the OSPCA, or they
kick us out for any reason,
by this new law we could
lose our name -- a name
that has meant goodwill
and trust for generations,
and is essential to our
fundraising," says Tim
Trow, president of the THS.
"Donations from the
public and gifts are our
only source of funds. We
get no grants, no handouts
from government."
Last week Trow wrote to
Rick Bartolucci, Ontario's
minister of community
safety, urging the removal
of the inflammatory section
from Bill 50. He called it
"an insurmountable conflict
of interest because the
Ontario SPCA will become
both regulator and
fundraising competitor to
its 32 affiliates." He said
Bill 50 will "upon
enactment, strip the names
and identities of other
charities amongst the 235
Ontario animal protection
charities registered with the
Canadian Revenue Agency."
The THS depends on the
OSPCA for inspectors in
animal abuse cases. Other
than the police, they are the
only ones licensed to carry
out investigations and lay
charges. There's rarely
disagreement when abuses
are found. But Trow accuses
the OSPCA leadership of
hiring private detectives to
check up on the THS,
including surreptitious
interviews of staff.
Largely unnoticed in Bill
50 is the revision of Section
10 in the old act that says
Bill 50: Flawed
no society, association or
group "established after the
30th day of May, 1955,"
shall function as an animal
welfare or cruelty
prevention organization
"unless it is incorporated
and becomes affiliated"
with what then was the
Ontario Humane Society
and is now renamed the
Ontario Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals (OSPCA).
Thus, animal welfare
bodies in business prior to
1955, seemed to escape
domination by the OSPCA,
which has been rent
asunder in recent years by
controversy, weak finances,
mass resignations, internal
feuds, etc.
Section 10 in the new act
is revised to say only groups
affiliated with the OSPCA
shall "use the name
'humane society' ... or 'spca'
or the equivalent of any of
those names ..."
Giving the OSPCA
control over the name
"humane society" (which it
has dropped and no longer
uses) has caused alarm
among some, who believe it
gives the OSPCA undue
Animaltalk
Summer 2008
9
 Bill 50: Flawed
power to threaten and
intimidate, says Trow.
"Put bluntly, our name is
our greatest asset. If we had to
change our name after 121
years, it would be devastating.
"Last year we had an
enviable record for saving
animals - 75% of our dogs
and cats were adopted; our
euthanasia rate was 6 %.
The OSPCA won't tell how
many it adopts and how
many it kills." (The
euthanasia rate at the
Toronto Animal Services --
the pound, in other words -
- is roughly 50%, a far cry
from the THS' s 6%).
Those who think the
OSPCA would never move
against the THS might
consider what's happening
in Burlington. In 1974
Animal Aid was formed
after the Burlington
Humane Society (affiliated
with what is now the
OSPCA) quit in 1970 over a
dispute with the city's
animal shelter program to
sell animals for research.
Animal Aid took over
the role, and the name, of
humane society and ever
since has functioned as
such. In 1999, the Hamilton
SPCA decided to include
Burlington, to form a joint
SPCA, even though it has
no shelter in Burlington.
Local people still depend
on the present BHS.
The Hamilton-Burlington
10 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
SPCA has threatened to sue
the BHS, but until the new
OSPCA Act, there was
nothing to prevent
Burlington using the
"humane society" name.
Jolene Regan, president
of the all-volunteer BHS,
says the membership
approved, and "Burlington
Humane Society" became
their legal name, filed with
Industry Canada and
incorporated in 2006.
"We have good
working relations with the
city and with the city's
animal control shelter," says
Regan. "Hamilton's interest
in Burlington is because
we're a relatively affluent
community for fundraising."
Like Burlington, the
Mississauga Humane Society
is volunteer-based, and
unaffiliated with the OSPCA,
which has a reputation of
being dogmatic and
dysfunctional, a view shared
by the THS leadership.
Regan is concerned the
Hamilton SPCA has a "zero-
kill" policy -- it will not
put down any animal. This
means it will not accept
most sick or injured animals
but directs them to the city's
Animal Control Services,
which shares the same
building with the HSPCA.
It's cruel to keep some
animals alive, says Regan.
"You try to help
them all, but
some can't be
saved."
In other
words,
the HSPCA
accepts
healthy
animals for
adoption,
while sick or
unwanted
animals go to Animal
Control for execution.
Like the THS, Regan
worries that the wording on
the new SPCA Act gives the
OSPCA a weapon to
prevent the use of the name
"humane society."
A spokesman for
Bartolucci says the
controversial wording in
Bill 50 is mere
"modernizing of the
language and not intended
to change the existing
situation." The intent is to
have better control over
cruelty and abuse of
animals, and not to prevent
people caring for animals.
He didn't think banning
organizations from using
the word "humane society"
unless they were affiliated
with the OSPCA, posed a
danger to, say, the
Mississauga and Burlington
humane societies, which are
independent (as are the
Marathon, Collingwood
and Picton humane
societies). Or Toronto,
which is affiliated but
which the OSPCA envies
and resents.
If the ministry believes
this, it doesn't understand
the issue.
To avoid a snakepit of
future controversy, before
the next reading of Bill 50,
the words "humane society"
should be removed from
the sentence that says the
OSPCA has sole disposition
on who can use that name.
It's ludicrous, when one
thinks about it. Both the
OSPCA and Hamilton have
abandoned the "humane
society" identification for
themselves, but want to
prevent any except those
affiliated with them from
using it.
Bartolucci is to be
commended for updating
the act, but he should
familiarize himself with the
OSPCA's turmoiled history,
and that in the past it has
proved unreliable in dealing
judiciously with power.
 Bill 50: Flawed

Comments from Queen’s Park

Bill 50 went into debate on May 5, and cleared second reading on
May 27. Here are some selected quotes from a heated debate:
The NDP’s Cheri DiNovo::
“It means that a venerable institution
of over 100 years like The Toronto
Humane Society would not be able
to use the word “humane” anymore,
as well as 235 other charities that
look after and protect our animals. I
don’t understand why this section
[section 6] is even in this bill. What
is the purpose of it? It needs to be stricken from the Bill, and
I’d like the Committee to look at that”. - Hansard, May 5, 2008
Peter Kormos NDP Justice Critic:
“Why would this Government want
to effectively shut down The
Toronto Humane Society with its
century-plus history of looking out
for the welfare of animals?” “New
Democrats are being very clear that
they will not support section 6.
We stand with Tim Trow, The
Toronto Humane Society, and other humane societies
that are not associated with OSPCA.” - Hansard, May 6, 2008

The Progressive Conservatives’ Garfield Dunlop:
“Another major flaw in this Bill is the
inclusion of section 6. Humane
societies across Ontario believe that, if
enacted, - section 6 will strip them of
their names. As The Toronto Humane
Society says and that’s an institution
that’s over 120 years old – ‘It’s like
losing your name; it’s like losing your
identity’. Minister, will you stand today in this House and
commit to either removing or making major amendments to
section 6 of Bill 50?” - Hansard, May 7, 2008
Monte Kwinter (Lib. MPP York Centre, former Minister
of Community Safety and Correctional Services):
"...the Toronto Humane Society
does its welfare-and does it very
well. I have nothing but praise for
them. They do a wonderful job
and are a wonderful facility..."
- Hansard, May 12, 2008

Online Donations Made Easy!

Making an online donation
has never been easier, please visit
www.torontohumanesociety.com
 Bill 50: Flawed

Dedicated to the
care and protection April 29, 2008
of all animals.
VIA FAX

A charitable
The Hon. Rick Bartolucci
organization solely
Minister of Community Safety & Correctional Services
funded by kind donors Government of Ontario
and volunteers. Queen’s Park, 25 Grosvenor Street, 18th Floor
Toronto, Ontario
M7A 1Y6
Lost & Found
Adoption Dear Minister Bartolucci:
Foster
Re: An Open Letter to Ontarians Concerning
Kitten Nursery Bill 50 – Provincial Animal Welfare Act, 2008
Micro-chipping
Spay/Neuter We write to ask you to remove section 6 from Bill 50. Section 6 provides that
community-built shelters that either don’t wantto be affiliates of the Ontario SPCA, or
Wildlife Rehabilitation shelters that the Ontario SPCA itself does not want as affiliates, will be stripped
Cruelty Investigation automatically of their names by the Legislature.
Humane Education
Historically in Ontario, the many voices of the Province’s animal welfare movement
Food Bank
have been its strength. If the result of Bill 50 is but one voice, Bill 50 will have stifled
Veterinary Care debate and diversity and will have weakened what hasbeen built up in communities
Feral Cat Program over generations.
Mind Your Manners-
Canine Program Bill 50’s role for the Ontario SPCA appears to be one of insurmountable conflict of
interest because the Ontario SPCA will become both regulator and fundraising
competitor to its 32 affiliates.

In addition, Ontario’s animal welfare moveme nt is wider than the Ontario SPCA or its
affiliates. Bill 50 will instantly, upon enactment, strip the names and identities of other
charities amongst the 235 Ontario animal prot ection charities registered with the Canada
Revenue Agency.

Bill 50 provides for no decision-making process and no appeal to the courts. It provides
no explanation as to why it is necessary for the Legislature to take away the identities of
any charities.

Sanctions against holding out or infringing a corporate name already exist in Ontario
law. In the case of The Toronto HumaneSociety, there can be no confusion because
there is no similarity between “The Toronto Humane Society” and the “Ontario SPCA”.

11 River Street | Toronto, Ontario | M5A 4C2 | 416.392.2273 | Fax: 416.392.9978

www.torontohumanesociety.com

12 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Bill 50: Flawed

Dedicated to the
care and protection The Toronto Humane Society is a well-known Ontario landmark, a hospital and a
shelter, caring for both wild and domestic animals. We employ 150 care-givers, and, at
of all animals.
any time, 500 volunteers provide recuperative or palliative care as foster parents, feed
orphan kittens in the nursery, groom cats, or walk dogs.
A charitable
We serve Province-wide, one-third of our clients coming to us from beyond our Toronto
organization solely
area.
funded by kind donors
and volunteers. The Toronto Humane Society has grown and prospered since 1887 because of the
generous support of financial contributors and members. We do not receive, and never
have received, government funding or funding from the Ontario SPCA.
Lost & Found
Adoption Our name is how we have been identified for 121 years. It has been entrusted to us by
Foster
successive Provincial Governments andit represents the goodwill and trust of
generations.
Kitten Nursery
Micro-chipping Our name is how we speak to supporters and donors, and it is how they identify us in
Spay/Neuter their wills or in other giving. It is howvolunteers and animal care-givers find us and it
is how clients access our services - rescuing animals, re-uniting lost animals, saving
Wildlife Rehabilitation injured wildlife, providing veterinary care, extending shelter and providing homes.
Cruelty Investigation
Humane Education Take away our name and identity and you jeopardize ourability to provide essential
animal care to citizens when theyare desperate and in need.
Food Bank
Veterinary Care Please remove section 6 from Bill 50.
Feral Cat Program
Thank you.
Mind Your Manners-
Canine Program
Yours truly,

Tim Trow
President

TT/ct

cc Office of the Integrity Commissioner –

Lobbyist Reg. #OL0061-19990406122620

11 River Street | Toronto, Ontario | M5A 4C2 | 416.392.2273 | Fax: 416.392.9978

www.torontohumanesociety.com

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
13
 Gifts

Paws for the Cause RBC Fun Day

Volunteer walk-a-thon We’ve made new friends
major success
t was community week over at the Royal Bank of Canada.

O n June 1, 2008, Julie Borenstein hosted a walk-a-thon

for the THS, pledging all proceeds to the Society.
Recently she visited the shelter to pass along nearly $2,000.
Based on the success of her inaugural event, Borenstein is
already planning how to make Walk a Dog’s Way, 2009
even more fruitful.
Thanks Julie!
I From June 8 through June 14, the folks at RBC are
finding ways to give back. And our neighbours in the Van
Horne plaza branch, in the same mall as our new North
York Adoption Center, decided to make the THS its charity
of choice during a fun day fundraiser on Thursday, June 12.
There was face painting, musical games, food sales, water
balloon fights and so much more. And all the proceeds
from the day go to the THS.
Thank You, neighbour!

14 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Rescue

Rescue!
A look at some of the calls for help answered
by The Toronto Humane Society annually

A neighbours cell phone call alerted agent Smith to a dog stuck in a window.

Agent Urlea and cats she rescued after being locked 3 days in an
apartment with no food or water.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
15
 Marginalia

THS earns major safety rating

n late February we underwent a major safety audit. We passed with flying colours. Because we know THS supporters
Itake safety as seriously as we do, we wanted to share the results.

16 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Marginalia

Marlies put the “fun” in fundraiser

n a fun kind of fundraiser, the Toronto Marlies (the Leaf’s farm club) invited us to the Ricoh Centre on March 30
I to share in the excitement (and cash). Our fundraisers fanned out around the building, generating several
hundred dollars in donations. And our Lead Investigator, Agent Tre Smith, did a Q&A which was beamed up onto
the scoreboard. Fun? Wow! Some days work just doesn’t feel like work at all.

Marlies Day.

Emergency Response, Amazing Result

n late March we received an emergency call to a high-rise apartment fire. While no
I people were injured in the blaze, an adult cat perished in the smoke. But before
she died, she seems to have hustled her four kittens off to the back of a bedroom
closet, where we located them. Rushed to the THS emergency room, they were
immediately placed in an oxygen chamber. Thankfully, all four kittens survived,
unscathed. Pictured are agent Tre Smith and agent Manuela Urlea.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
17
 Membership

Join Up as a Member
Special Request from the Board of Directors
Membership Protocol
When you finish reading this issue of Animaltalk, will you please help the
animals one more time by filling out the membership form stapled here.
You may not be a member even though you are a donor. Under Society by-laws,
donors are not automatically members. Even though you may have sent in
financial support or even if you send in a cheque regularly, unless you have a
membership card you are not a member. (If you already have a membership card,
please ignore this request. You can be assured that your membership is in full

Why Be a Member
The primary reason for signing up as a member is that the animals need you.
They need the strength of numbers when The Toronto Humane Society speaks
up for the animals. We have spoken up against the seal hunt, the killing of
monkeys by the federal government in their shadowy testing lab in Winnipeg,
the Calgary Stampede, the whipping and other abuse of tourist carriage horses,
and the puny veterinary budget and shameful killing of animals in Toronto
municipal pounds.

Duties and Responsibilities of Members

The duties and responsibilities of members are both simple and vital.
Members need to read Animaltalk and visit the website from time to time to
keep informed of Society affairs. They need to weigh what is being achieved
and be prepared to question the Board of Directors to keep it on its toes.
Once a year, members need to step forward to elect the Board of Directors,

18 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Membership

force and effect until the membership secretary writes to you to tell you it is time
for its renewal.)
Animaltalk is now on-line at www.torontohumanesociety.com For those who
keep in touch by reading Animaltalk on the website, you can alternatively sign up
to be a member there.
For information on membership, please feel free to call the membership secretary
at 416 392 2273, ext. 2117 at any time.

The other reason to become a member is to support other volunteers.

Many other charities can do their job with professional and paid staff
alone. But because there are so many animals needing care at the Society,
volunteers are part of the animals’ care network. We depend on foster
parents, dog walkers and kitten bottle feeders at the shelter every day of the
week. These good people need the strength of a broad community
membership behind them.

appoint auditors and approve the financial statements at the Annual

General Meeting.
Your Board of Directors respectfully asks you to assume the duties and
responsibilities of membership. Please become part of a vibrant Society
electorate for the animals sake.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
19
 Fields of Green
THS dog parks spring to life

20 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Fields of Green

here’s something magical about rich green grass underfoot. Every

T Spring the dog park comes alive again, a small oasis tucked away in
the concrete jungle of downtown Toronto. And believe us, the dogs LOVE
it. Watching them run, roll, wrestle and splash with total abandon makes
everything worthwhile.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
21
 ANIMAL RIGHTS
It's a dog's life – and death
Q I understand that thousands of
unwanted cats and dogs are killed
each year in Toronto's animal
shelters. How can that be ethically
acceptable in a civilized society?
A How can what be ethically
acceptable? That there are thousands
of unwanted cats and dogs in this city?
Or that they are killed?
Roughly 20,000 pets find their way to
the city's two main shelter systems.
Some are lost; some wild; some old
and sick. Most are unwanted. Their
odds of surviving the experience are
much, much better if they end up at
the Toronto Humane Society (a
charity) than at Toronto Animal
Services (your tax dollars at work).
The difference between the Humane
Society's euthanasia rate of less than 10
per cent, and the Animal Services rate
of roughly 50 per cent, lies in their
purpose and core values.
The Humane Society exists to care for
animals, pure and simple. Their
stated policy, which they defend
stridently, is to put down only
animals that are so sick or mean-
tempered that they could never be
adopted, appropriately, by anyone.
22 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
According to Lee Oliver, the Society's
Senior Communicator, THS would
"never" put an animal down simply
because of a lack of space. He claims
there's always room for one more, even
if it means crowding the people a bit.
Judging by the tone of voice he uses
when talking about this, Oliver is not a
man whose dog I would want to kick.
Toronto Animal Services exists to serve
human society, by enforcing the law,
picking up nuisance animals, and so
on. They, too, try to find homes for
unwanted animals.
But when kennel space runs out, an
assessment is done as to which animals
are least likely to be adoptable, and
they are culled from the pack. Some of
these are mortally sick; some are
vicious; most are simply redundant.
According to Eletta Purdy, manager of
TAS, 4,000 cats were put down in 2006
(about half of their total intake), and
more than 1,000 dogs.
The ethics? No one quarrels with putting
down animals too sick to live happily, or
too nasty to place safely. But putting
animals down simply because of space
constraints is another matter. Despite all
our whinging about how we love our
KEN GALLINGER
pets, animals in urban society are often
treated as commodities. They are
marketed as aggressively as plasma TVs,
overbred for specific traits, and shown
off like a new iPod. Have you noticed
how often PetSmart opens in the same
plazas as Future Shop? With the same
bright lights and flashy signs. And when
they become redundant, thousands of
dogs and cats are killed each year ...
much as we might discard an old TV.
That's not necessarily the fault of
Toronto Animal Services. They likely
provide the best care they can within
budget and other constraints. It's more
often the fault of careless or outright
cruel owners.
But given my advancing age and bad
temper, if my name were Fluffy and I
were lost I'd rather take my chances on
the Humane Society than on The Pound.
Send your questions directly to
Ken Gallinger at ethical@sympatico.ca.

Food, Glorious Food
Not your average dog’s breakfast
he shelter
T environment is not
ideal for any animal. But
for dogs it can be
particularly distressing.
It’s a noisy place,
unfamiliar, full of activity
and very much out of the
ordinary for dogs
especially when they first
arrive. Many of these dogs
have only lived with one
Health
owner and winding up in
The Toronto Humane
Society shelter—though a
gotten used to eating
garbage or survive on
other things that end up
what they may have eaten
in their former homes. We
cook rice, ground meat,
safe haven and much giving them parasites, some vegetables, egg and
better than the streets or diarrhea and skin some supplements
the city dog pounds—can problems. And then there According to The
be very upsetting or even is just plain old stress. Toronto Humane Society’s
depressing to them. Some or all of these head veterinarian, Dr.
Before they come here things often result in dogs Steve Sheridan, “It’s a
some dogs have been that don’t have an pretty standard formula.”
strays for weeks or appetite. So we’ve begun But he happily admits it
months or longer and to make food more like does seem to do the trick.
Animaltalk
Summer 2008
23
 Making History
For the first time in 121 years, The Toronto Humane Society
open a satellite adoption centre

24 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Making History

he Toronto Humane Society has

T taken an historic step by opening its
first-ever satellite location. The Toronto
Humane Society Adoption Centre,
located in the Van Horne Plaza, on
Victoria Park Ave, just north of Sheppard,
is a storefront operation specializing in
adoptions. While we were excited by the
prospect of a new centre providing new
hope for the animals, we were blown away
by the way the public shared our vision:
More than 100 people showed up for the
ribbon cutting ceremony, where dignitaries MPP David Caplan (Don Valley East,
Minister of Health and Long-Term Care) and Shelley Carroll (City Councillor for Ward
33 and Budget Chief) helped THS President Tim Trow officially open the centre.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
25
 Making History

“For 121 years, the THS has been confined to one building,” THS President Tim Trow told the
gathered Grand Opening crowd, “but we know that we serve many people and animals from
the north-east end of the GTA. With this centre, we’re making it easier for people to open their
homes to Toronto Humane Society animals.”

The main location, at 11 River St, still houses our main animal hospital, kitten nursery, fostering
office, and investigations department. And the bulk of THS adoption will still place in the downtown
headquarters (last year we found homes for 6,372 animals). But already 247 cats, mammals, birds
and rodents have found homes through the satellite centre, making it a powerful tool for finding
better lives for Toronto’s animals.

And now, as the centre gains traction and is proving itself to be a success, keep an eye open for
the possibility of a THIRD THS location: Coming Soon – Adoptions West.

26 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Making History

Like all great institutions, The Toronto

Humane Society is a work in progress: a
121-year-old work in progress. From it’s
beginnings on Bay St., through a long
stretch on Wellesley St. and into the iconic
River St. building, the THS has always
been grounded in one location at a time.
But as the animal welfare movement has
evolved, so too has the THS.

Here’s a brief look at the evolution

of the places we’ve called home:

In December 1887, The Toronto Humane

Society was founded by J. J. Kelso to
combat animal cruelty. The first location,
from 1888 through 1912 was a small
centre at 103 Bay St.

As the Society grew, we moved to 197

McCaul St. until 1929.

Then came a 50 year stretch on

Wellesley St.

In 1979 the Society built the current

headquarters at 11 River St.

In March, 2007, we opened a 6,000 sq ft

second floor addition to the River St
building, fondly dubbed the Cat Sky House.

April, 2008, the first ever satellite adoption

centre opened, in the Van Horne Plaza,
Victoria Park, just north of Sheppard
Shelley Carroll, City Councillor, Ward 33 and David Caplan,
Don Valley East, Minister of Health and Long Term Care.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
27
 Gifts of Love

In Honour of...
Tribute gifts are a thoughtful and meaningful way of expressing your good wishes or
commemorating an occasion. With a minimum donation of $80.00, The Toronto Humane Society
will print the name of the friend or family member you choose to honour. This is a great way
to simultaneously acknowledge a loved one and help the many animals in our care.

Mr & Mrs Ken McKinnon Jack & Leone Callander

Emily Dugan Skytronix Clients
Cosmo, Elmo & Taz Niko
Roy-Rocky & Karl Tim Najonen
David Zifkin & Sid Cerkes Alesandra & Richard Biasi Zappas
Tom Atkinson Jeff Pangman
Ella Sorensen Jesse
Barb Patterson
Chester
The MacDonald's Family
Lucy Mirra, Larkell Doyle
Dr. Mark Spiegle & Staff
Krista Laugaly
Carolyn Wohar
Jordan & Abby
Jill & Tim Bourne
Amanda & Ricky
Erin Juravsky
Michelle Balke
Dr. Judith Bonkalo
Matthew Hudson
Natalie Cader-Beutel
Nicholas
Jean McQuattie
Sheldon Rajesky
…of clients
Erin Juravsky
Isabel
Hannah & Ben Stafl Wedding Donation for her guests

Margaret Forsey The Honourable Justice Gilles Renaud

Mr. Jeff Ray Erin Juravsky

Jonas Simpson Kevin Covelli

Casey Erin Juravsky
Daniel Ms. Deborah Devgan
Leah Holgate Dr. Doug Mason

Call 416.392.2273 ext. 2171

* Donations received December 1, 2007 until May 31, 2008

28 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Gifts of Love

In Memory of...
With a minimum gift of $80.00, The Toronto Humane Society will print the name of
the one you wish to pay tribute to. This is a great way to simultaneously acknowledge a
loved one’s memory and help the many homeless animals in our care.

Buster Mac Conrado Estrada Copper, Shadow & Tim Renfrew Lorraine Lemberk
Maisey
Sandy Hicks Kasper & Ted John Gallaugher Late Father and
Chester & Stitches Stepmother
Frank Harvey Snow Nellie Almeida Vivian Cantle
Whitmell, Anton Toth
Barbara Palmer Eva Schweizer Mrs. Murella Jervis Belinda Gionna
Donna & Alan
Mark Salter Dorothy Sparkes Cansdale Toby Ronald Mitchell

Grey Kitty Janet Banaszuk Michael John Scott Monkey & Malone Jon Ball

Bonnie O'Donnell Mary Nadon Mr. Bill Ward Kato Truce

Thor & Bert Morty Crawford Noble Ruth Johnson Joyce Hutchings
Lucy Rohmer Dr. James Perkins Audrey Pretlove Ann Le Ber Barry Mitchell
Ceilidh (Kay-lee) Josef Katz Bet Bronaugh Lillian Dauphinee Juanita Saunderson
Charlotte Gervis Cinderella Dorothy Sparkes Arliin Louise Caster Frank W Schwieder
Russell Short Edna Ronald Mitcher Roberta Findley
Frank M Schwieder Helen Turner Dodie Sanders Joan Lepard Robert Foley
Maybury
Hellen Merifield Cito Peter Kenwrick Ted Philp
Kayla Church
Helen Kleinberg Anthony Wilson
Maria Catandella
Gatnip Littles Lucie Tuch
Catherine Baillie Charles Weir, Barry
Homburger Eola Clark
Wilfred Shapiro & Harvey
Jamie McGuiness
Arnold Zurin Mark Salter Beverley Sutherland
Dorothy Dexter
Harry Zweig
Bullet Mark Howard Salter Bailey
Hokey MacKay
Elizabeth Bettridge
Mr. Juris George Joia Dorothy Viola
Tasha
Sonia Janiec Mitenbergs Sparkes
Walter Jones
Elizabeth Bettridge,
Mrs. Janette Sharkey Sonia Janiec Sparky
George Williamsua Tasha
Dr. Allen Graham Monty Helen Davis
Elizabeth Ann Helen Zepotoczny
Jacqueline Martin Mr. Peroff Donaldson, Kiki
Helen Zepotoczny Marilyn Liscoumb
Helen Margaret & Ruth Johnson Mr John Hutchinson,
Mrs Sue Petty & Mr. Victor Barrese Ron Mitchell
Kydd Merifield

Call 416.392.2273 ext. 2171

* Donations received December 1, 2007 until May 31, 2008

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
29
 A Surprise Around Every Corner
The THS is more than dogs and cats… way more

30 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
 Small Domestics and Birds

W
hen most people talk about The Toronto Humane Society, the conversation
immediately gravitates to cats and dogs. But we’re also the first place to look if
you want to adopt an iguana, bond with a bearded dragon, cuddle a chinchilla, chat with
a cockatiel, or … well, you get the picture: the THS is teeming with fascinating small
mammals, exotic birds and reptiles. Here are some of the surprises in store when you
next visit either the main location or our satellite adoption centre in the Van Horne Plaza.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
31
 Health
Medical Miracles
Cassie & Tazzy
ver our 121 year
O history, The Toronto
Humane Society has saved
the lives of thousands of
animals in need of
emergency medical
treatment. We've seen
accidents, neglect and abuse
of every kind. And
sometimes even our best
efforts are not enough.
Other times we look on in
awe as animals that
appeared beyond help have
bounced back to live long,
fruitful lives.
In this space we’ll
profile these Medical
Miracles as they pass
through our emergency
room. As always, we salute
all those who help these
animals pull through.
Cassie
Cassie is an eight-year-old
Dalmatian cross. She was
rushed to The Toronto
Humane Society on Sunday,
March 30, after she was
found lying on the ground
unable to move. Cassie was
just hours from death, in
the advanced stages of
autoimmune hemolytic
anemia. That’s a disease
where the body destroys its
own red blood cells.
“She was in shock, she
32 Animaltalk
Summer 2008
was cold, weak and unable
to stand,” said Dr. Rob
Rock, one of The Toronto
Humane Society’s
veterinarians. He ordered
an emergency blood
transfusion. That is not an
easy thing to pull off in
Toronto on a Sunday
CASSIE
afternoon. After that Cassie
was placed on intravenous
fluids and medication to
combat her condition.
Cassie wasn’t out
of the woods, though.
In fact, consensus among
staff veterinarians was
that Cassie would die
that evening.
But no one consulted
Cassie on that. And Cassie
is a fighter!
She made it through the
night and by Monday she
was able to stand. By
Wednesday she was a new
dog, full of life, gaining
energy and ready for
normal walks. She’s a
sweetheart as well. “One of
the friendliest dogs I’ve ever
met,” said Toronto Humane
Society vet Karen Ward.
While Cassie’s prognosis
is still “guardedly
TAZZY
optimistic” it looks as
though this tough and
amazingly sweet dog is on
the road to a full recovery.
After three weeks in the
clinic, Cassie found
a Guardian Angel in
one of our volunteer dog
walkers, who decided
Cassie would be a lot
happier in her home than
in the clinic. The rest, as
they say, is history.
Tazzy
When Tazzy, an 8-year-old
terrier cross came to the
THS, he was literally
starving to death. He had
an severe infection in his
tongue, which left him
unable to eat solid food
(and also prone to
snapping and growling
because of the extreme
pain). The prognosis
was poor.
After several tests, and
an aggressive run of
antibiotics, the THS vets
determined that part of the
tongue had to be
amputated. Once the
damaged portion of tongue
was removed, Tazzy
quickly showed an interest
in soft food. Daily hand-
feeding of a homemade
diet of rice and pureed
meat helped Tazzy regain
his strength and appetite.
Before long he began
eating from his own bowl,
and happily wolfed down
chewy treats.
With the pain of
infection gone, Tazzy
became a happy, social
fella, and that leads us to
the final part of this
miracle: in early April
Tazzy found a new, forever
family and has taken up
residence as the sweet and
spoiled dog he always
deserved to be.
 Wildlife

This place is for the birds!

and raccoons… and squirrels… and opossums…
head this spring, the
A newly renovated
Wildlife Centre has filled
these animals has a story:
One particularly uplifting
wildlife case occurred in
he’s about one year old)
managed to limp away
from the fall with only a
on Toronto’s waterfront. A
mute swan was tangled in
fishing line and had a
up with injured birds, late March, when we broken clavicle. He’s barbed fishhook stuck in its
orphaned raccoons and a responded to an emergency recuperating in our clinic, foot. Once in the shelter,
menagerie of animals call after a red-tailed hawk and while our vets give him our vets removed the hook
including wild bunnies, crashed into a window on a 50/50 chance of flying and untangled the line. A
opossums, groundhogs, the 23rd floor of a again, he is healing quickly. few hours later the swan
swans and just about any downtown high-rise and Another occurred a few was released where it was
wild urban animal you can plummeted to the ground. days later, when we found and swam off to join
imagine. And every one of The young hawk (vets think responded to an urgent call its colony.

Animaltalk
Summer 2008
33
 Gifted

Gifted!
How one sweet shelter dog saved my family
got my father a dog for
I Christmas because I
desperately needed help.
maintenance.
And that’s what I
intended, I swear.
around and around I
called my mom to advise
her that I found a dog that
table and gobbled bread
baskets and pounds of
butter. He ate a whole raw
It was almost a decade But we can’t help who or was a little different from chicken my mother was
ago. My parents and I were what we fall in love with. what we discussed, but prepping and threw it up an
suffering terribly as a result A pit bull-German nonetheless, perfect. hour later. He was so
of an estrangement from
my only sibling and his
family and I just couldn’t
handle Christmas alone.
I had only been dating
my Rob for a few months
and he wasn’t yet a regular
fixture at holidays. No
matter how hard I tried,
and believe me I tried, I
wasn’t big enough or loud
enough or entertaining
enough to fill the hole they
left. I just couldn’t take up
enough space.
I needed a dog.
My parents, my dad
especially, have always
adored dogs. Two mutts shepherd-doberman And he was perfect, in excitable that a playful tone
had the run of the house mix (we think), he had his way. From the moment of voice would send him
throughout my childhood been living at the shelter a few days later when I bouncing on all four legs,
and the younger had finally for more than three dropped him onto my three or feet into the air. He
died at 18 years of age the months. There was a letter blindfolded Dad’s lap and was so hyper that my father
previous summer. taped to his cage, written shouted Merry Christmas!, was often forced to wrestle
Mom felt sure Dad was as if by him, begging he was a perfect diversion him to the ground, hold
ready for another and gave someone to give him a from the sadness that back him there and coo softly in
her blessing for me to pick chance. I gathered from then hung like a heavy his ear, imploring him to
one out at The Toronto the shelter staff that his cloud in my parent’s house. relax and calm down.
Humane Society and days were numbered. Hercules became his Hercules did calm down
surprise him with it at I had to have him. name and he was as time went on. He
Christmas. Get a smaller I took him home to my incorrigible. He chewed became intimately attached
dog, she advised. little downtown house and everything he could find. to my father. He insisted on
Something sweet and low- while he wildly raced He climbed the kitchen sitting on his lap,

34 Animaltalk
Summer 2008

burrowing into chest and
tucking his head under his
chin and to this day he
wails and cries like a baby
when left alone. Dad takes
him everywhere; flying him
into his fishing camp and
letting him ride shotgun in
his pick-up truck on
morning coffee runs when
he is treated to a donut
hole daily.
Everywhere they go
people stop them. “What
kind of dog is that?” they
say. “That’s the weirdest
looking dog I’ve ever seen.”
And Dad puts his
hands over Herc’s ears.
“Don’t listen to them
Hercie,” he says. “You’re
a fine-looking dog.”
It seems silly to make
some kind of dramatic
proclamation or put a
cheesy movie-of-the-week
title to this story, a la The
Dog Who Saved My Family!
But in a lot of ways I
think he did.
Hercules made us laugh
and gave us something to
talk about that Christmas
and we needed that. In the
days that followed he made
my parents house a noisy
place to be, a busy place, to
be and they needed that
even more.
He gave my parents
something to focus on
during a very dark period of
their life. He was so grateful
for their love, so overjoyed
to be in their presence, so
friendly and accepting of
everything and everyone in
their world that it was
impossible not to be
infected by his happiness.
And when the rift with
my brother and his children
began to mend Hercules
and his boundless energy
was there to break the ice
and relieve the tension: no
one could refuse him a
smile, no one was unmoved
by his enthusiasm.
Gifted
Today my parents house,
being on the lake, is a
gathering place for my family
and friends and my brother
and his children and their
friends. Summers especially
are a whirlwind of flying and
boating and barbecues and
laughter and fun.
Hercules is there too of
course. Old and grey and
grizzled now, he’ll join in
the fun if asked, but mainly
sticks close to my father’s
side. And in my typical,
cheesy, movie-of-the-week
way I like to think of both
of them as the glue that
continues to keep our home
and our family together.
This story was originally
published at
www.donmillsdiva.blogspot
.com where the author
regularly writes about
family life.
- Kelly
Animaltalk
Summer 2008
35