A Guide to Dog ‘Shelters’ and Dog Rescue Groups In Ottawa the Ottawa Area Ottawa Valley Gatineau Ontario and Canada

I am providing this guide/listing for the following reasons...

One - So people in the region have access to a comprehensive, categorized list of services.

Not all ‘shelters’ are the same – in the absence of knowledge you may end-up dropping YOUR dog off at a kill or high-kill shelter.

Two - To ensure that people that TRULY have no choice but to surrender their dog have access to a simple list providing them with multiple contact options.

Three - to Educate People

Just because you call a rescue does not mean that they can take your dog…

Most rescues are run by volunteers who foster dogs out of their personal residence.

If all the fosters are currently looking after a dog, that rescue cannot take your dog until a foster becomes available;

Second most rescues will not take a dog that has bitten a human, but there are a few rescues who will;
Third, if you take a dog who has bitten (full out bite - breaking of the skin as opposed to nip) a human and drop it off at most municipally/provincially funded shelters (Humane Society, SPCA, etc) your dog will not be put up for adoption – it will instead be killed – unless you have managed to make your way to one of the very few no-kill HS or SPCA shelters (see list below).
If you surrender a dog to a municipally/provincially funded shelter in Ontario or Quebec YOUR dog can end up being used as a research animal (‘scientific’ invasive, lethal testing) in which case the dog will die after being USED as a researchanimal.

This practice of using shelter dogs is called Pound Seizure – it is not only legal in Ontario it is also the law. Pound seizure is also legal and practiced in Quebec.
Your dog can also end-up in a kill shelter that uses Gas Chambers and/or;
Heart Sticking to euthanize your dog .Intracardial injections, commonly referred to as "heartsticks," are considered inhumane and cruel when performed on animals that arent anesthetized or comatose. I personally consider the practice cruel and inhumane regardless of whether the animal is anesthetized, comtose or not! Using the "heartstick" method is painful as the needle containing sodium phenobarbital (a schedule II controlled substance used to euthanize animals) passes through the chest wall and several layers of muscle before puncturing the heart. If the euthanasia substance isnt carefully and accurately administered, an animals lungs could be punctured, causing them to fill with fluid. Which is an even more cruel and painful way to die.Often the sticking does not enter in the right place, so the technician will just keep sticking the dog, creating one wound after another until they get the right location...while the dog continues to suffer. Often the dogs are not anesthetised at all, or not sufficiently

Four - For those dear people who love their dog selflessly – just as a dog loves…

People who find themselves in a circumstance beyond their control – although they truly (and I mean truly) love their dogs but have themselves, become ill, have cancer, are dying and as such cannot keep their beloved dog, and do not have a family member of friend who will take the dog – regardless of the temperament of the dog;

And in finding themselves in this terrible position will not just list their dog on Kijjij, Used Ottawa, Craig’s List etc. either for profit (money) or for free.

While some of the dogs listed on these type of sites (i.e. Kijjij do make it to very loving homes...
Many of the dogs listed on these sites end up absued; used in (illegal) dog fighting rings – either as fight dogs or bait dogs. Yes there are illegal dog fighting rings in Ontario and the Ottawa Region as well as elsewhere in Canada. The dogs who are used in fighting rings suffer much pain , abuse and then death.

Five - for those people who say they love their dog BUT…want to surrender, give or dump their dog on me!

‘Shelters’ and Rescue Groups - a Comprehensive List

First, it is of the utmost importance to understand that if your dog has a history of biting people – it does not mean your dog is bad, but it does mean your dog is misunderstood and has lacked the opportunity to have proper leadership in its life. Dogs are not by nature indiscriminately aggressive – people inadvertently create aggression in dogs. And yes, some people intentionally create aggression.

Most SPCA, ‘Humane’ Society ‘shelters’ in this area ARE KILL shelters – they will not put your dog-up for adoption, YOUR dog WILL be killed;Most Rescue Organizations in this area will not take a dog that has a history of biting people, a history of killing other dogs, cats etc.However there ARE a few rescue organizations in this area which WILL take such dogs, as noted further below…

Rescue Groups Who Will Take Dogs

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