Quit picking on the SPCA

In the May 11 issue of the Mirror Kate Davey wrote a letter claiming, among other things, that the Executive Director, Pierre Barnoti, "gets 10 per cent of the profits" and that the SPCA does not walk its dogs. Volunteers do, in fact, walk dogs at the Canadian SPCA and the claim that Mr. Barnoti gets a percentage of profits is simply not true. Furthermore, no rabbits are euthanized for eating carrots, messily or otherwise, and the euthanasia rate is far below the 60 per cent rate that Ms. Davey claims.

Ms. Davey stated that she was last involved with the SPCA over four years ago, so the fact that she provides erroneous information is not surprising. The question I have is: why? Why is she writing a letter years after her involvement with the SPCA ended, making statements that we know are untrue?

There are those in Montreal who claim to care about animals yet spend their efforts attacking the SPCA, making what are in fact false claims. And what is most unfortunate is that these attacks have an uncanny knack for taking place every time that there is an SPCA fund-raising campaign underway.

The media in Montreal, particularly the English press, have been continual pawns in these attacks. No one contacted the SPCA to verify Ms. Davey's claims, which they would have discovered were unfounded. This, sadly, is not an isolated case. On April 5, the Suburban printed two articles about the SPCA that made erroneous claims, such as that the board of directors was made up of "an odd mix of animal welfare and language rights activists," or that our logo was being sold for profit, thus putting our charitable status at risk.

These articles were filled with inaccuracies and yet no facts were ever verified by the Suburban before printing. In fact, when we contacted the editor of the Suburban to raise our concerns about these articles, we were encouraged to respond in writing and were told that our response would be printed. The President of the SPCA did so at once, but to date that response has not appeared in any issue. It would appear that sensationalist attacks on the SPCA have an easier time getting into print than the truth does.

Montreal's SPCA takes in over 30,000 animals each year, operating on a budget of $3.5 million. The SPCA is not government funded, it counts completely on our citizens for its survival. In comparison, the Vancouver SPCA takes in approximately 20,000 animals a year on a budget of $11 million dollars. Carrying out our mission in Montreal is a constant battle against monetary constraints and each unsubstantiated claim by would-be "volunteers" and "animal rights activists" makes success that much harder to achieve.

These attacks are not unique to our SPCA. In fact, there is not a shelter in North America that doesn't suffer the attacks of those who feel free to criticize and attack, rather than pitch in and help. I would much rather have seen Ms. Davey come to the SPCA today, to talk with us and see what we are doing now. Instead, she felt that she could do more for animals by attacking, rather than joining, the organization that can best protect them.

The SPCA has made enormous strides in the last five years, and we are proud of all we have accomplished. A debt built up in the early '90s has been halved, the euthanasia rate dropped from over 80 percent to under 40 percent by the end of the decade, and we are working with the provincial government to enact a Quebec Animal Welfare Act. We have nothing to hide and have welcomed anyone to come and question us. We have held two "Meet the Board" sessions this year, and will continue to hold them.

The SPCA will survive because of the support of the citizens of Montreal and Quebec; I invite anyone who has a concern or a question to contact us. Come to our open sessions with any questions you have. Or call the Executive Director, Mr. Barnoti, at 735-9172. Do not let those who have their own agendas, or who believe "my way is the only way," take away an organization that has protected your animals for the last 131 years.

-- John Walls, Board of Directors, CSPCA