From California to Canada: Sixty Dogs get a Second Chance

On Friday, June 25, 2010, 60 small breed dogs from the South East Area Animal Control Agency in California and the Fresno SPCA took a Freedom Flight! They were flown on a private jet from Long Beach to the Edmonton Humane Society.

The dogs were not adopted from their respective shelters in California because they have a surplus of small breed dogs. But in Edmonton, small breed dogs are much harder to find and, therefore, more easily adoptable. So, in an effort to find them forever homes, these dogs were transferred north.

This is the fourth such Freedom Flight sponsored by Jan Folk of The Orange Dog, an online shopping site featuring quality pet supplies. Her organization's efforts have resulted in over 250 dogs being placed in new forever homes.

This is a 'Good News!' story that encourages people to consider adoption from animal shelters and fosters an industry-wide belief that 'every dog deserves a forever home'. That said, .... stories like this also raise questions from the public and the companion animal industry about these types of programs and will be addressed at the 2010 International Summit for Urban Animal Strategies Topics of of discussion will include:

• Should Canadian donations be used to ‘save’ US dogs?
• Is reaching across political and geographic boundaries an issue?
• Should Canadians import dogs when there is an overpopulation problem in Canada?
• What health/disease risks arrive with this kind of livestock import?
• Is animal welfare competing with livestock retailers and breeders when it imports ‘popular’ dogs for adoption?
• What are the differences between animal welfare and livestock retailers who import dogs from the US?
• Is the industry indirectly creating a market for dogs that may be the result of inappropriate breeding?
• Why can’t we manage the number of pets being produced so this imbalance doesn’t occur.

Seize the opportunity to lead the industry in this important discussion at the

2010 International Summit for Urban Animal Strategies

Wednesday, 13 October to Saturday, 16 October 2010
Main topic of this year's Summit is:

National Strategies and Codes of Conduct for Homing in Urban Municipalities

Join your peers

We welcome your feedback on this topic! Please comment below:
 

Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor