Dogs from northern Ontario that are seeking homes have been brought to Bracebridge.
A fire at Pikangikum First Nation necessitated that the Northern Reach Rescue Network make room at its Thunder Bay shelter as they expected dogs to come from Manitoba.
As a result, up to 20 dogs from northern Ontario have been transported to southern Ontario to try and find adoptive families.
The dogs started in Thunder Bay, with a stop in North Bay Wednesday evening. They are being transported by the Humane Society’s Pet Valu Animal Rescue Express.
The dogs and puppies are now at Ontario SPCA animal centres in Barrie, Muskoka, Midland, Orillia and Orangeville where they may have a better chance at adoption.
Daryl Vaillancourt of the OSPCA head office in Stouffville says people love to adopt northern dogs.
“The northern dogs, people really warm up to them,” he said. “They are wonderful animals and they are very well socialized.”
He says there will be a period of about a 10 to 14 days where the animals are examined, get their shots up to date, get micro-chipped and then they will be put on the OSPCA website and social media channels to find a home. That part happens quickly said Vaillancourt with the dogs in great demand.
“A few years ago we brought down some dogs from Big Trout Lake to Peterborough and at that time we had 33 people for each dog we were looking to adopt,” he recalled.
As Pikangikum First Nation began to evacuate the NRRN determined it needed to make room for dogs that would be affected by the fire. The actual location of that blaze is 300 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.
“By working together through the Animal North Network, we’re able to move these dogs in need of families to other areas of the province in order to ensure there are more resources available in the North to help animals displaced by fires,” said Judi Cannon, Director of Partnerships & Community Outreach, Ontario SPCA and Humane Society.
In 2018, the Ontario SPCA and it’s animal wellness partners transported over 550 animals from the North to be adopted. To go to the OSPCA website you can click here.
