Canada bans import of dogs from 100 countries
Eight-month-old Nike is a new arrival to Canada from the country of Oman.
“We were able to bring him to Canada along with two other little wadis,” said Anne Hoekema, a volunteer with Extraordinary Galgos and Podencos.
Nike has already found a new life and forever home with a family in Esquimalt. He and his sisters are lucky, because life in Oman can be hard for dogs.
“What happens to these little wadi is quite horrendous,” said Hoekema. “They are shot, they are beaten, they are left abandoned and many of them starve to death.”
As of Wednesday, the government of Canada has banned the import of dogs from 100 countries, including Oman. The reason? Those countries have a track record of canine rabies. Canine rabies was eradicated in this country decades ago through a successful vaccination program.
“Rabies is almost 99-per-cent fatal if you don’t catch it before clinical symptoms,” said Dr. Adrian Walton, owner and lead veterinarian at Dewdney Animal Hospital in Maple Ridge.
Walton agrees with the ban. He says a lot of dogs are entering the country that aren’t properly vaccinated for canine rabies.
“Some of the vaccines that they are using are not licensed for use in rabies for here in Canada,” said Walton.
He cites an example from a dog owner who recently came to him. That dog owner allowed him to share their information with CTV News.
The dog was vaccinated, but with a long-expired vaccine.
Penny Stone, the executive director of the Victoria Humane Society, says every dog deserves a good life, no matter where they are from. She believes the positive side of the ban is that more domestic dogs could find a forever home.
The humane society currently has more than 100 dogs up for adoption. On Wednesday, workers there were showing off a new batch of puppies to a group of provincial government employees.
“Unfortunately, with COVID, animals didn’t get spayed and neutered like they should have in remote communities we work in,” said Stone. “There’s a lot of babies having babies.”
Stone estimates there are hundreds of thousands of dogs that need homes in Canada.
Back in Esquimalt, Nike managed to get out of Oman at the 11th hour. As of Wednesday, no more dogs will be allowed into Canada from that country.
As for the Extraordinary Galgos and Podencos group, it says Spain is one of only a handful of countries where the ban does not apply. The group says it will continue to bring dogs from that country into Canada.
Extraordinary Galgos and Podencos has been bringing Spanish greyhounds to Canada since 2016.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.