Animal welfare survey still open for input

The province is asking foropinions on animal welfare and protection on Prince Edward Island as itworks to identify gaps in existing laws and policies.

The Department of Agriculture launched an online surveyin December. It'sset to closeFeb.15. There have already been hundreds of responses.

The purpose of the survey is to determine how wellP.E.I.'s Animal Welfare Act is working.

The act came into effect inApril2017.

"We felt that it was really time to gauge folks perceptions of the act. We've been using it now for several years," saidDr. Carolyn Sanford, veterinarian and P.E.I.'s director of animalhealth and welfare.

"We wanted to see if it's meeting the needs, if it's doing what it needs to do and we just wanted to gain general people's opinions."

Animal advocates hope the results will lead to improvements for animal welfare and protection.

The P.E.I. Humane Society runs ashelter in Charlottetown. It also enforces the Animal Welfare Act and the Dog Act with three animal protectionofficers.

"I think there are always concerns about animal abuse and neglect," said Jennifer Harkness, the society's development and communications manager.

"It's an issue that really doesn't seem to go away."

Officers investigated 400 complaints of abuse and neglect in 2020.

The society would like to see more funding for animal protection. Harkness said they would also like to see more power for protection officers to lay chargesand stronger rules for dog breeders.

"Limits to how many animals they can have.Limits to how often a female can be bred,"Harknesssaid. "Things like that that are easier to regulate."

Many breeders meet the standards of care, Harkness said,but the protectionofficers dosee cases of neglect and abuse.She suggests a commercial breedingregistry with support staff.

Animals in agriculture

Another P.E.I. animal advocatewould like to see better protections for animals in agriculture.

Elizabeth Schoales, an animal advocate consultant, would like to see surprise inspections. She said shedoesn't like the complaint-driven system that leads to investigations now.

"The vast majority of agricultural animals are hidden from the public, so it's very difficult foranybody to be able to see anything," said Schoales.

"If there is a problem, the government is probably not going to know about it unless it hears from the public."

The animal welfare survey is open until Feb.15.

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