Pet Save Sudbury sees increase in cats being abandoned by owners
A local organization that cares for animals in Sudbury is continuing to cope with the pandemic. Recently, officials with Pet Save said they have never seen so many cats at the shelter at one time.
Staff at Pet Save are currently caring for 130 kittens and approximately 100 cats.
The director of Pet Save, Jill Pessot, said these numbers are significantly higher compared to previous years.
"Normally at this time of the year, I'd be going on with either 60 or 70 cats and maybe 30 or 40 kittens. This year, we are going in with really high numbers," Pessot said. "This fall has been the busiest we’ve seen in over a dozen years."
Pessot said COVID-19 plays a factor and she is finding this year many people are just dumping their cats on the streets and leaving them to fend for themselves.
"Most of them are coming in friendly, so they were owned by somebody and they’ve been let go. So, when those cats are let go and they are unspayed and unneutered then we end up with them populating on the streets," she said. "So, that’s what we’re seeing a lot of this year. Normally, we see a high feral cat population compared to our domestics on the streets, and now we’re seeing a lot of domestics."
Not only does Pet Save have more than 200 cats to care for at this time, it just recently received 15 dogs from a northern community.
"We’ve got dogs, puppies, that sort of thing. And their temperatures are already dropping significantly up north.. some of them are already seeing snow," Pessot said. "So, we are looking to try to remove as many as we can to help keep those populations under control."
She said with the large influx of animals, more volunteers, dog walkers, and fosters are needed.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING King Charles' cancer treatment progressing well, says Buckingham Palace
King Charles III’s doctors are 'sufficiently pleased' with his cancer treatment and he is expected to return to public-facing duties, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.
BREAKING Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
'Unacceptable': Trudeau reacts after AFN chief says headdress taken from plane cabin
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief said her headdress was taken from an airplane cabin this week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the incident 'unacceptable' and a 'mistake' on the part of Air Canada.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Regina police officer injured after being accidentally shot by fellow officer's gun
An investigation is underway after a Regina police officer was accidentally shot by a fellow officer’s gun during the search of a house early Friday morning.
From faulty kids' cribs to flammable kids' bathrobes, here are the recalls of the week
Health Canada issued recalls for various items this week, including kids’ bathrobes, cribs and henna cones.
Taylor Swift dons Montreal designer's dress in 'Fortnight' video
A pair of Montreal designers' work has now been viewed over 41 million times. Taylor Swift dons a Victorian throwback black gown in her latest music video, 'Fortnight', designed by UNTTLD due Simon Belanger and Jose Manuel Saint-Jacques.
Island near Mull of Kintyre for sale for US$3.1 million
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.