Agenda Index City of Vancouver

POLICY REPORT
LICENSING

TO:

Planning and Environment Committee

FROM:

Director of Licenses and Inspections

SUBJECT:

City of Vancouver Submission to BCSPCA Community Consultation Process

 

RECOMMENDATION

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

COUNCIL POLICY

Council has adopted the Animal Control By-Law (No. 7528) which provides for licensing, impounding, and controlling the city's dog population.

PURPOSE

This report seeks Council's approval of the directions in this report and of submission of this report to the BCSPCA's Community Consultation process.

BACKGROUND

The City of Vancouver is actively involved in animal welfare, (primarily dogs), through its Pound operation, dog licensing program, 14 Animal Control Officers who enforce the licensing by-law and regulate animals in public places, and education programs to promote the licensing and care of dogs in the city.

The City of Vancouver's powers to regulate animals are set out in s.324 of the Vancouver Charter. The Charter also provides for the City's ability to make by-laws requiring the licensing of dogs, to prohibit certain animals from city streets and from running at large, as well as conferring on Animal Control Officers certain powers to deal with `dangerous dogs'.
There has been increasing public concern about the prevention of cruelty and the enforcement of standards of care of dogs in the city. However, unlike the Local Government Act, which expressly confers on other municipalities the power to enact by-laws prohibiting cruelty to animals, the Vancouver Charter does not include this express power.

The Provincial legislation which deals directly with the treatment of animals is the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. The Act makes it an offence to cause or permit an animal to be in `distress'. Under this Act, the SPCA is given broad powers to prevent, or to alleviate, cruelty to animals. In addition, the SPCA has the power to take custody of an animal in distress and to obtain a warrant to enter premises to gather evidence concerning a possible offence, and to determine if any action should be taken to relieve an animal in distress. They also have the power to enter premises (other than a dwelling house) without a warrant to deal with an animal in `critical distress' or where immediate veterinary intervention is necessary to prevent the imminent death of the animal.

Both the City and the BCSPCA are being approached to take stronger action to prevent cruelty and to ensure standards of care for dogs. While the roles and authorities of the BCSPCA and the City organizations differ, the public generally perceives both as performing similar functions and there is an overlap of expectations for addressing these concerns.

As a response to considerable public scrutiny regarding the fulfilment of its mandate to prevent cruelty to and to promote the welfare of animals, the BCSPCA has undertaken a community consultation process to define its future role and is seeking input on better ways to protect and care for animals, as well as how they are currently performing their work. The consultation process includes a number of dialogue sessions with key stakeholders (including Animal Rights groups), as well as a series of public hearings across the Province. City staff are participating in the dialogue sessions. Staff also believe it would be beneficial for Council to endorse a submission to the Public Hearings, outlining the City's concerns and proposals as noted below. Based on staff's participation so far in the process, it is clear that the BCSPCA has recognized that public expectations have changed and its current operations are not meeting those expectations.

DISCUSSION

Public concern and staff's review have `indicated' three areas of concern. These are outlined below, along with proposed City directions for consideration as part of the BCSPCA's consultation process.

1. Standards of Care
The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act does not provide a definition of adequate food, water or shelter. To address this, the BCSPCA has developed some general standards and guidelines for their field personnel to use in determining proper levels of care. These are included as Appendix A. However, there appears to be inconsistent application of these standards in Vancouver and across BC. Also, some advocacy groups are taking issue with specific aspects of the standards; for example, the standards address tethering which some groups feel should not be permitted at all. While the specific standards are being discussed in the consultation process and may be refined as a result, staff believe the City should strongly encourage the SPCA to refine (if necessary) and use them as a basic standard of care for prevention and enforcement purposes.

2. Enforcement
As noted earlier, the BCSPCA has the clear mandate and authority for enforcement of standards of care and for prevention of cruelty. There is considerable public concern about the lack of prosecutions and apprehension of animals seen to be in distress; and the absence of a clear mandate at the BCSPCA staff level about when to intervene. While some othermunicipalities have adopted standard of care by-laws under the provision in the Local Government Act empowering them to enact by-laws prohibiting cruelty to animals, the City does not have this express power. Further, the City does not currently have the resources to pursue this additional mandate. Therefore, it is recommended that the City strongly encourage the BCSPCA to focus on enforcement as a primary aspect of their work and that the City find ways to assist with this work. For example, City staff might record complaints and field observations of cruelty to dogs for potential referral to the BC SPCA. Staff might also help educate owners regarding the standard of care and conduct follow-up inspections to verify remedial action by owners. Staff recommend that the City extend an invitation to the BCSPCA Vancouver operation to work together to develop a protocol for a co-operative enforcement of standards of care for the City of Vancouver.

3. Prevention and Education
Prevention is also a key component of the SPCA mandate. Successful prevention reduces the need for enforcement and education is a key component of prevention. The City, in addition to working with SPCA, is already working with other municipalities to pool resources and co-ordinate efforts towards creating awareness, education and prevention tools. This is an area where the City has expertise, multi-cultural and community connections, and staff believe the City can help make a difference in raising the current standards of care for animals in the city. Issues that need to be addressed through an education program include responsible pet ownership, standards of care, stray animals, benefits of spaying and neutering, breeding, pet identification and licensing, and dog bite prevention. The BCSPCA have put a high priority on education and recognizes the critical importance in changing public attitudes and behaviours towards responsible treatment of animals.

CONCLUSION

There are anywhere from 65,000 to 80,000 dogs in the city. Citizens, some of whom are involved in raising awareness through the Animal Rights movement, have increasingly expressed concern about the standards of care, particularly for dogs in the city. There are legal and resource limitations to the City expanding its mandate to include enforcement, and in any case, it is more effective and efficient for the City not to duplicate, but to support and enhance the efforts of the SPCA in fulfilling their public mandate and role under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.

Note from Clerk: Appendix A is not available in electronic form - on file in the Office of the City Clerk.

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