If the BCSPCA is not offering a real program to assist abused women who must find temporary housing for their pets, then they have no business promoting such a system.

When I phoned and emailed transition houses around BC to ask about what a woman could do if she was leaving an abusive situation in a hurry, and couldn't take her pets, in every case the answer was "The BCSPCA is working with transition houses and has a program in place to help these women...."

These official groups, some private and some government, all put the onus back onto the BCSPCA and told me to contact them for help. Trouble is, when you do contact the BCSPCA for help, they don't have anything in place to help with! And I don't think many people would consider surrendering their pets to an unknown fate, a solution or a program.

This is unacceptable, because if these transition houses and official women's support groups knew that there really wasn't anything being done by the BCSPCA, they would be more inclined to create something themselves. But since they have seen the brochures put together by the BCSPCA, they assume it's taken care of, leaving these women with nothing. How terribly sad that the BCSPCA is contributing to further mental anguish for these needy women at their time of crisis. It is bad enough they are leaving an abusive relationship, and bad enough they may be running scared with their kids, but it is an all-time low when an official organization like the BCSPCA has verbally taken on the responsibility for helping these victims, yet doesn't follow through.

Perhaps when these groups and government agencies see the report put together by AAS, they will do what the City of Vancouver has done about yard dogs: stop waiting indefinitely for the BCSPCA to get off the pot, and do something themselves.

Emma Vandewetering,
Research,
AAS