Lets face it, it is costly to feed dogs, especially too many useless dogs, especially when money is no enough like Jack Neo said, and especially that dogs are not able to contribute to make any money.
Canadian sled company mass slay over 100 sled dog as business is so bad and they are expensive to feed. They are mostly Huskies.
http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/Canmore+Firm+Condemns+Slaughter+Sled+Dogs/4200595/story.html
Canmore Firm Condemns Slaughter Of B.C. Sled Dogs
100 animals die when business slows
By Sean Myers, Kim Pemberton, Calgary Herald February 1, 2011 1:07 AM
The slaughter of 100 sled dogs by an employee of a tour operator in Whistler, B.C., should be a wake-up call for the need for tougher regulations in the industry, says an operator in Canmore.
"We're horrified," said Connie Arsenault, owner of Snowy Owl Dog Sledding Adventure Tours.
"Those dogs didn't deserve that. I don't understand why that person would even follow through on instructions like that."
In April, 2010, an employee was ordered to proceed with an "execution-style" cull of 100 sled dogs that were no longer of use to Whistlerbased Outdoor Adventures "due to a slow winter" season, according to a confidential workers' compensation review decision obtained by the Vancouver Sun.
The cull came to light in a claim filed by the man -- the general manager at the time -- who sought compensation for symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder including nightmares, panic attacks and depression resulting from the slaughter. The dogs were shot or had their throats cut while tethered after business took a downturn.
The BC SPCA has launched an investigation of the cull.
The employer did not challenge the employee's claim, which was accepted by review officer Allan Wotherspoon, in his report dated Jan. 25, 2011.
The employee received compensation.
Arsenault said it may take a tragedy of this magnitude to finally force provincial and municipal governments to bring in tougher laws and regulations regarding the proper care of animals.
"We've been working with the government bodies and the SPCA because there have been a lot of issues, even here, about certain companies," said Arsenault.
"And nothing is ever done."
Three dog sledding companies contacted in Canmore said they were shocked by the cull and said dogs in their care are only euthanized due to serious illness or advanced old age. And dogs are only euthanized by a veterinarian, said Arsenault and the owners of Mad Dogs and Englishmen, and Howling Dog tour operators.
The culled dogs were owned by Howling Dog Tours Whistler Inc., of which Outdoor Adventures owns a stake.
Rich Bittner, owner of Howling Dog Tours Ltd. in Canmore, said he sold his 50 per cent share in the Whistler company to partner Robert Fawcett in 2004 and said he has nothing to do with the B.C. operation.
"We haven't even talked with Bob," he said. "We didn't know about this situation until (Monday) morning.
"We're stunned and mortified," Bittner said. "It's certainly not our policy to do mass culls. Our company policy is we adopt as many dogs as we can."
David Brace, a veterinarian in Canmore who works with Snowy Owl and sits on the board of directors for the Bow Valley SPCA, said animal shelters and kennels across Western Canada would have helped, had they been asked. "Obviously this is someone who made a really, really terrible choice. Had this person put out a call, people would've gone to his aid and taken a bunch of his dogs, maybe all of them. There were lots of other things that could've been done."
The WCB report stated that a veterinarian had been contacted, but refused to participate in the cull of the job tried to adopt out the dogs, but with limited success.
"In the past, his practice when euthanizing a dog was to take it for a walk in the woods and give them a nice meat meal to distract them. That would make for a calm environment and kept the dogs away from the general population so as not to disrupt them. He would use a gun to euthanize the dogs," the report states.
However, because of the large number of animals, the man said he was forced to euthanize the dogs in full view of the other dogs and by about the 15th dog it appeared to him "the dogs were experiencing anxiety and stress from observing the euthanasia of other members of the pack and were panicking."
As a result of the panic, a dog named Suzie was only wounded.
"Susie was the mother of his family's pet dog, Bumble. He had to chase Suzie through the yard because the horrific noise she made when wounded caused him to drop the leash. Although she had the left side of her cheek blown off and her eye hanging out, he was unable to catch her. He then obtained a gun with a scope and used it to shoot her when she settled down close to another group of dogs."
After disposing of Suzie's body, he noticed another dog, named Poker, that was special to him and not slated to be euthanized had been accidentally shot when he had shot Suzie earlier.
"Poker was covered in blood from a neck wound and covered in his own feces. He believed Poker suffered for approximately 15 minutes before he could be put down."
The dogs were killed over a couple of days starting April 21.
His last memory of killing the final 15 dogs was "fuzzy" and in some cases he felt it was simpler to "get behind the dogs and slit their throats and let them bleed out."
"By the end he was covered in blood. When he finished he cleared up the mess, filled in the mass grave and tried to bury the memories as deeply as he could."
Five days after the final culling, he sought treatment from a clinical counsellor, who said he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
His family physician said the worker, who resides at the same location as the dogs with his family, complained of "panic attacks, nightmares, sleep disturbances, anger, irritability and depressed mood since culling approximately 100 dogs."
In addition to the post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, he exhibited "dissociative symptoms."
It was also reported that the man must care for the dogs that remain seven days a week, but he continues to "deteriorate mentally and emotionally."
Marcie Moriarty, the head of the BC SPCA cruelty investigations division, said the man, who was the general manager at the time with Outdoor Adventures in Whistler, could have simply said no.
"I've no doubt he has suffered posttraumatic stress, but there's a thing called choice. I absolutely would not have done this and he could have said no, this is a Criminal Code offence, and to have just stopped. I don't feel sorry for this guy for one minute.
"The way he describes multiple shots and faces blown off and coming back on a second day is gruesome. I've never read anything quite like it. The way this employee describes it -- it's a massacre, absolutely."
Moriarty said the SPCA began investigating the culling of the sled dogs this weekend after CKNW radio provided her with a heavily censored report from the Workers' Compensation Board.
WCB spokeswoman Donna Freeman said she cannot confirm that a claim has been filed by any party, because if there was a report filed it would be "considered private because they're medical files."
She said her understanding of the situation is CKNW got a report off a law firm's website and that report was made to the first level at WCB, which is the review decision.
Lawyer Cory Steinberg is reportedly representing the man, who has not been named.
Moriarty said from what she's read so far in the report "many people will be shocked," not only about the culling, but how sled dogs are treated in general.
"There is a problem with the sled dog industry in general. People see these 20 sled dogs, an idyllic setting with snow in the background and think 'how great.' But what they don't see is the 200 dogs tethered and sleeping out back, chained to a barrel." She said it appears the request was made to kill the dogs because of a downturn in the business after the Olympics.
Moriarty said while RCMP have been contacted about the culling of the sled dogs, the SPCA is the lead investigator and will be executing warrants to obtain further information.
She said they also plan to uncover the mass grave to examine the dogs' remains, but can't do that immediately because the ground is frozen under several feet of snow.
In a statement, Outdoor Adventures spokesman Graham Aldcroft said there are now no firearms on site and any time a sled dog will be euthanized in the future it will be done in a vet's office.
"While we were aware of the relocation and euthanization of dogs at Howling Dog Tours, we were completely unaware of the details of the incident until reading the WCB document Sunday," he said.
Outdoor Adventures had a financial stake in Howling Dogs with the operational control of the company in the hands of the worker referred to in the WCB ruling, according to CKNW.
Outdoor Adventures is owned by Joey Houssian, 29, whom Pique Magazine identifies as the son of Intrawest scion Joe Houssian.
smyers@calgar yhera ld.com
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
Canadian sled company mass slay over 100 sled dog as business is so bad and they are expensive to feed. They are mostly Huskies.
http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/Canmore+Firm+Condemns+Slaughter+Sled+Dogs/4200595/story.html
Canmore Firm Condemns Slaughter Of B.C. Sled Dogs
100 animals die when business slows
By Sean Myers, Kim Pemberton, Calgary Herald February 1, 2011 1:07 AM
The slaughter of 100 sled dogs by an employee of a tour operator in Whistler, B.C., should be a wake-up call for the need for tougher regulations in the industry, says an operator in Canmore.
"We're horrified," said Connie Arsenault, owner of Snowy Owl Dog Sledding Adventure Tours.
"Those dogs didn't deserve that. I don't understand why that person would even follow through on instructions like that."
In April, 2010, an employee was ordered to proceed with an "execution-style" cull of 100 sled dogs that were no longer of use to Whistlerbased Outdoor Adventures "due to a slow winter" season, according to a confidential workers' compensation review decision obtained by the Vancouver Sun.
The cull came to light in a claim filed by the man -- the general manager at the time -- who sought compensation for symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder including nightmares, panic attacks and depression resulting from the slaughter. The dogs were shot or had their throats cut while tethered after business took a downturn.
The BC SPCA has launched an investigation of the cull.
The employer did not challenge the employee's claim, which was accepted by review officer Allan Wotherspoon, in his report dated Jan. 25, 2011.
The employee received compensation.
Arsenault said it may take a tragedy of this magnitude to finally force provincial and municipal governments to bring in tougher laws and regulations regarding the proper care of animals.
"We've been working with the government bodies and the SPCA because there have been a lot of issues, even here, about certain companies," said Arsenault.
"And nothing is ever done."
Three dog sledding companies contacted in Canmore said they were shocked by the cull and said dogs in their care are only euthanized due to serious illness or advanced old age. And dogs are only euthanized by a veterinarian, said Arsenault and the owners of Mad Dogs and Englishmen, and Howling Dog tour operators.
The culled dogs were owned by Howling Dog Tours Whistler Inc., of which Outdoor Adventures owns a stake.
Rich Bittner, owner of Howling Dog Tours Ltd. in Canmore, said he sold his 50 per cent share in the Whistler company to partner Robert Fawcett in 2004 and said he has nothing to do with the B.C. operation.
"We haven't even talked with Bob," he said. "We didn't know about this situation until (Monday) morning.
"We're stunned and mortified," Bittner said. "It's certainly not our policy to do mass culls. Our company policy is we adopt as many dogs as we can."
David Brace, a veterinarian in Canmore who works with Snowy Owl and sits on the board of directors for the Bow Valley SPCA, said animal shelters and kennels across Western Canada would have helped, had they been asked. "Obviously this is someone who made a really, really terrible choice. Had this person put out a call, people would've gone to his aid and taken a bunch of his dogs, maybe all of them. There were lots of other things that could've been done."
The WCB report stated that a veterinarian had been contacted, but refused to participate in the cull of the job tried to adopt out the dogs, but with limited success.
"In the past, his practice when euthanizing a dog was to take it for a walk in the woods and give them a nice meat meal to distract them. That would make for a calm environment and kept the dogs away from the general population so as not to disrupt them. He would use a gun to euthanize the dogs," the report states.
However, because of the large number of animals, the man said he was forced to euthanize the dogs in full view of the other dogs and by about the 15th dog it appeared to him "the dogs were experiencing anxiety and stress from observing the euthanasia of other members of the pack and were panicking."
As a result of the panic, a dog named Suzie was only wounded.
"Susie was the mother of his family's pet dog, Bumble. He had to chase Suzie through the yard because the horrific noise she made when wounded caused him to drop the leash. Although she had the left side of her cheek blown off and her eye hanging out, he was unable to catch her. He then obtained a gun with a scope and used it to shoot her when she settled down close to another group of dogs."
After disposing of Suzie's body, he noticed another dog, named Poker, that was special to him and not slated to be euthanized had been accidentally shot when he had shot Suzie earlier.
"Poker was covered in blood from a neck wound and covered in his own feces. He believed Poker suffered for approximately 15 minutes before he could be put down."
The dogs were killed over a couple of days starting April 21.
His last memory of killing the final 15 dogs was "fuzzy" and in some cases he felt it was simpler to "get behind the dogs and slit their throats and let them bleed out."
"By the end he was covered in blood. When he finished he cleared up the mess, filled in the mass grave and tried to bury the memories as deeply as he could."
Five days after the final culling, he sought treatment from a clinical counsellor, who said he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
His family physician said the worker, who resides at the same location as the dogs with his family, complained of "panic attacks, nightmares, sleep disturbances, anger, irritability and depressed mood since culling approximately 100 dogs."
In addition to the post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, he exhibited "dissociative symptoms."
It was also reported that the man must care for the dogs that remain seven days a week, but he continues to "deteriorate mentally and emotionally."
Marcie Moriarty, the head of the BC SPCA cruelty investigations division, said the man, who was the general manager at the time with Outdoor Adventures in Whistler, could have simply said no.
"I've no doubt he has suffered posttraumatic stress, but there's a thing called choice. I absolutely would not have done this and he could have said no, this is a Criminal Code offence, and to have just stopped. I don't feel sorry for this guy for one minute.
"The way he describes multiple shots and faces blown off and coming back on a second day is gruesome. I've never read anything quite like it. The way this employee describes it -- it's a massacre, absolutely."
Moriarty said the SPCA began investigating the culling of the sled dogs this weekend after CKNW radio provided her with a heavily censored report from the Workers' Compensation Board.
WCB spokeswoman Donna Freeman said she cannot confirm that a claim has been filed by any party, because if there was a report filed it would be "considered private because they're medical files."
She said her understanding of the situation is CKNW got a report off a law firm's website and that report was made to the first level at WCB, which is the review decision.
Lawyer Cory Steinberg is reportedly representing the man, who has not been named.
Moriarty said from what she's read so far in the report "many people will be shocked," not only about the culling, but how sled dogs are treated in general.
"There is a problem with the sled dog industry in general. People see these 20 sled dogs, an idyllic setting with snow in the background and think 'how great.' But what they don't see is the 200 dogs tethered and sleeping out back, chained to a barrel." She said it appears the request was made to kill the dogs because of a downturn in the business after the Olympics.
Moriarty said while RCMP have been contacted about the culling of the sled dogs, the SPCA is the lead investigator and will be executing warrants to obtain further information.
She said they also plan to uncover the mass grave to examine the dogs' remains, but can't do that immediately because the ground is frozen under several feet of snow.
In a statement, Outdoor Adventures spokesman Graham Aldcroft said there are now no firearms on site and any time a sled dog will be euthanized in the future it will be done in a vet's office.
"While we were aware of the relocation and euthanization of dogs at Howling Dog Tours, we were completely unaware of the details of the incident until reading the WCB document Sunday," he said.
Outdoor Adventures had a financial stake in Howling Dogs with the operational control of the company in the hands of the worker referred to in the WCB ruling, according to CKNW.
Outdoor Adventures is owned by Joey Houssian, 29, whom Pique Magazine identifies as the son of Intrawest scion Joe Houssian.
smyers@calgar yhera ld.com
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
