Two Montreal boroughs ditch private pound - Pet forum for dogs cats and humans

cpietra16 · #1 May 5th, 2011, 06:31 AM

Having dealt with them....this is good news!!!!

By CBC News, cbc.ca, Updated: May 4, 2011 2:16 PM
Two Montreal boroughs ditch private pound

Two boroughs have dropped the services of Berger Blanc, which was the subject of a Radio-Canada investigation on the inhumane treatment of animals in April.
Two Montreal boroughs are terminating their contracts with the Berger Blanc private pound following allegations of animals being mistreated.

An investigation by Radio-Canada's Enquête program broadcast in April showed footage of questionable euthanasia practices.

At a borough meeting last night, Cote-des-Neiges/Notre-Dame-de-Grâce officials voted to end its contract immediately, despite being obligated to give 30 days notice to the pound.

Mayor Michael Applebaum said the borough will pay Berger Blanc for the 30 days, but will not use its services.

"It's not a question of cost, it's a question of the welfare of our animals," Applebaum said when asked about the $10,000 the borough will lose.

The SPCA will take over services for the borough immediately.

Meanwhile, the Plateau Mont-Royal borough has also voted not to renew its contract with Berger Blanc, which runs out next month.

Councillor Piper Huggins told CBC News she has been receiving complaints from citizens for the past year.

The Enquête investigation showed animals being given given lethal injections without being sedated first, in violation of North American veterinarian standards.

Employees trained at the pound were in charge of administering needles, rather than a veterinarian.

Eight boroughs still use pound

There are eight other boroughs across the city that use the private pound's services, which is hired by the individual boroughs instead of the central city administration.

Huggins said she will present a motion at the next city council meeting asking for a committee to be created to oversee animal management.

The city of Montreal is expected to make an announcement about the pound soon.

Berger Blanc refused to comment Tuesday.

The private pound handles more than 30,000 animals a year, which is about half of Montreal's abandoned pet population.

Melinda · #2 May 5th, 2011, 08:03 AM

yipee, there is a thread started somewhere about the dealings at berger blanc and the newspapers accounts etc. only two posters seemed to have commented. but it sure interests me.

http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread....t=berger+blanc

marko · #3 May 5th, 2011, 08:25 AM

It interests me very much as well.
I have a lot of experience w/montreal's spca but almost none with berger blanc.

I can say that a few years ago I lived very close to berger blanc and went in and offered to be a volunteer dogwalker. They told me they had no such program. I told them I didn't care that there was no program and that it would be my pleasure to regularly walk their dogs and that I have experience. They said no....and that was that. It left a very sour taste in my mouth.

But What is really strange to me are the boroughs that are/were affiliated with berger blanc.

Both NDG and CDN are like 1-4 kilometers from the SPCA. The berger blanc is close to the tip of the Island and is over 20 KM farther. How does that make sense? If there are 2 city pounds shouldn't they service the boroughs CLOSEST to them?

What am I missing?

Melinda · #4 May 5th, 2011, 08:36 AM

kick backs?

Love4himies · #5 May 5th, 2011, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by marko

What am I missing?

Costs or corruption. BB may have offered cheaper services or there was a buddy-buddy system between BB and the Boroughs.

marko · #6 May 5th, 2011, 08:42 AM

That's an odd answer Melinda but I don't know much about it.

If that IS the case then the dealmakers in NDG and CDN should be fired.

OBVIOUSLY if my dog was lost I would expect that the pound that is 2 kms from my house should get the call - NOT the pound that's 20 kms away and has no subway system close by....that's just dumb and a disservice to both pets and pet owners.

Melinda · #7 May 5th, 2011, 08:50 AM

the more dogs/cats pts, supposedly the more they were paid. so lets make a deal, you "burough" support me and I'll slip you XX amount? I'm guessing here...and going by what I've heard from different people around our spca

marko · #8 May 5th, 2011, 08:55 AM

Well that needs to stop....
Your kid wants to go to a close school, a sick parent wants to go to a close hospital...... and pets and pet owners want the closest pound.

On any given day the BB is an extra 45 min farther by car from NDG and CDN residents....and has no subway that's really close. The SPCA is right friggen there with a subway stop that's 1-2 walking minutes from the building

Melinda · #9 May 5th, 2011, 09:00 AM

but that isn't the way the world works marko....would be nice though wouldn't it? Hopefully berger blanc will be put out of business.

hypothetically, lets say pound bids on each borough contract, right?....all you need is one city/inside worker to "see" the bids and viola, anyone can bid a dollar lower, it happens in construction all the time...so why not pounds?

cell · #10 May 5th, 2011, 10:19 AM

Damn I just left NDG for Le-Sud-Ouest/Verdun area who still uses BB. It doesn't matter that my dog is tagged and microchipped they would still kill him if he ended up in their hands. Luckily being a small cute little doxie chances are good a citizen would pick him up and take him home if he ever went missing.

Melinda · #11 May 5th, 2011, 10:31 AM

but Cell, what about the dogs that aren't "little and cute"......do large black dogs deserve to die the way they do at BB? anyways doesn't Le-Sud-Ouest/Verdun use the mspca? or has that changed in the last couple of years?

BenMax · #12 May 5th, 2011, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melinda

hypothetically, lets say pound bids on each borough contract, right?....all you need is one city/inside worker to "see" the bids and viola, anyone can bid a dollar lower, it happens in construction all the time...so why not pounds?

It does not work that way Melinda. When I bidded, we had a time, a place and all bids were brought in envelopes which were sealed. They would inspect the envelope and then stamp it. You would walk into a board room with your envelope with other contractors and the envelopes were only then opened by the municipality representative. Everyone is there to witness the opening of the bids. The bids were then shared. Not all municipalities took the lowest bids.
They did not advise who was getting the contracts immediately. They would deliberate and let you know at a later date.

Now Marko....what about a contract that BB currently has that is far from the SPCA? Do you still believe that they should stick with BB rather than going for the SPCA which advocates animal welfare? If distance is your issue, then would it be safe to say that you want BB to still hold these contracts because they are closer? Sorry, but I disagree with contracting to only those that are close to the municipality that they serve. I hope not all municipalities share your view. I am hoping that BB loses ALL their contracts regardless of which municipality they serve. This is the only way that this ugly pound can be closed down and unserviceable for good.

Melinda · #13 May 5th, 2011, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BenMax

It does not work that way Melinda. When I bidded, we had a time, a place and all bids were brought in envelopes which were sealed. They would inspect the envelope and then stamp it. You would walk into a board room with your envelope with other contractors and the envelopes were only then opened by the municipality representative. Everyone is there to witness the opening of the bids. The bids were then shared. Not all municipalities took the lowest bids.
They did not advise who was getting the contracts immediately. They would deliberate and let you know at a later date.

Now Marko....what about a contract that BB currently has that is far from the SPCA? Do you still believe that they should stick with BB rather than going for the SPCA which advocates animal welfare? If distance is your issue, then would it be safe to say that you want BB to still hold these contracts because they are closer? Sorry, but I disagree with contracting to only those that are close to the municipality that they serve. I hope not all municipalities share your view. I am hoping that BB loses ALL their contracts regardless of which municipality they serve. This is the only way that this ugly pound can be closed down and unserviceable for good.

so all the bids were in secret.....and none were made public....and deliberated to be announced at a later date.....hmmmm makes a body think...yep, it does....

BenMax · #14 May 5th, 2011, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melinda

so all the bids were in secret.....and none were made public....and deliberated to be announced at a later date.....hmmmm makes a body think...yep, it does....

It does, but all those in the room are aware of the bids. We were not allowed to have a pen and paper to jot down the bids for reference..that is where you need to have super sonic memory so that you can report back.

The public does not care about the bids themselves...but I hope they care as to who has the contract.

Melinda · #15 May 5th, 2011, 02:41 PM

oh I know the public doesn't care about the bids, but other bidders do, I'm a very untrusting person when it comes to bids...I know how it works, I worked in it for years....

BenMax · #16 May 5th, 2011, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melinda

oh I know the public doesn't care about the bids, but other bidders do, I'm a very untrusting person when it comes to bids...I know how it works, I worked in it for years....

I hear you. But when I put in a bid, it was done well. There were no other papers, books nor pens on the table. All contractors were there with only their envelopes. One by one, the envelope went to the person looking over the bids. They were then opened one by one. The name of the contractor was announced as well as their bid.

Melinda · #17 May 5th, 2011, 03:53 PM

oh sorry, I thought you said they were announced at a later date.

BenMax · #18 May 5th, 2011, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melinda

oh sorry, I thought you said they were announced at a later date.

No - who won the contract was announced at a later date. Bids were known immediately. Maybe I did not express that clearly.

Melinda · #19 May 5th, 2011, 06:57 PM

gotcha!

Melinda · #20 May 7th, 2011, 07:59 AM

Opposition wants public animal pound. Montreal under fire for using private company for animal population control
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montre...ger-blanc.html

Brigitte Bardot sends a letter to Major Tremblay
http://fr.canoe.ca/infos/quebeccanad...06-095728.html

The former French actress Brigitte Bardot, who fiercely defends animal rights, has sent an open letter to Montreal Mayor Gerald Tremblay on Friday to ask him to terminate the contracts with The Berger Blanc.

In a letter, Brigitte Bardot reprehends “the horror in the eyes of dogs who wait” their turn “, surrounded by corpses.”

Bardot states that the images that were distributed by Radio-Canada should “haunt” Mr. Tremblay and he should “make the decision to radically alter [his] approach to the management of animals” in Montreal.

The former actress also condems the conduct of the employee of Berger Blanc, shown in the report.

The employee should, according to Ms. Bardot, “to be tried for such acts of cruelty, sadism akin to Nazism.”

Brigitte Bardot, asks the mayor of Montreal to “take the necessary measures so that the suffering endured by hundreds of animals over days can be recognized and be stoped,” including by terminating contracts with “this horrible company .

It also requires putting in place alternative measures to euthanasia as “sterilization, making the adoption.”

Ms. Bardot ends her letter: “Despite the slaughter of seals, animal genocide and shame of humanity, Quebec is a civilized country, changed … so why he is behaving like a barbarian country, primary to animals?”

marko · #21 May 7th, 2011, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BenMax

......

Now Marko....what about a contract that BB currently has that is far from the SPCA? Do you still believe that they should stick with BB rather than going for the SPCA which advocates animal welfare? If distance is your issue, then would it be safe to say that you want BB to still hold these contracts because they are closer? Sorry, but I disagree with contracting to only those that are close to the municipality that they serve. I hope not all municipalities share your view. I am hoping that BB loses ALL their contracts regardless of which municipality they serve. This is the only way that this ugly pound can be closed down and unserviceable for good.

I posted about my only experience w/bb in this thread. This is obviously a complex issue and i do not have all the facts - that's for sure. I have deliberately not read too much about this situation because these things always bother me. (I realize that's a lousy excuse).

Obviously we want quality pounds, schools and hospitals in our society and if 1 organization is providing sub-standard service....then yes it should be sacked and not serve people that live close by or anyone actually.

The distance factor IS VERY IMPORTANT though and imo shows a lack of concern for animals and pet owners. Not sure what else to say....

Melinda · #22 May 9th, 2011, 06:27 AM

I honestly do not understand how this is still going on..... and why no one else is putting in any bids for the contract??? http://www.montrealmirror.com/wp/201...-waiting-room/
Pet heaven’s waiting room
Critics say the Berger Blanc pound is cruel and kill-happy, but its director says the allegations are overblown. Contract negotiations with the Plateau may change the way it does business
by ELISABETH FAURE
March 24, 2011

FINAL DESTINATION? Berger Blanc
Photo by RACHEL GRANOFSKY
What is the truth about the Berger Blanc? That’s the question being raised by concerned pet-owners across the island. A movement online and on the ground against the city’s for-profit animal pound is growing.

“The Truth About the Berger Blanc” Facebook page created by the pound’s critics has over 700 people Liking it. The page’s creators accuse the pound of lousy customer service and various nefarious activities. And an online petition opposing the pound’s activities currently has over 2,700 signatures (petitions24.net/petition_berger_blanc).

Critics charge that the pound isn’t helpful to owners who’ve lost their pets, with wild and unsubstantiated rumours accusing the pound of everything from selling animals to labs to gassing them to death en masse.

“There are many, many, many rumours,” acknowledges Pierre Couture, Berger’s owner and executive director. “It would be impossible for us to keep all our contracts if we did those things.”

Open since 1983, the Berger Blanc services over 30 boroughs and municipalities in Greater Montreal from its location at 9825 Henri-Bourassa, two blocks east of Rivière des Prairies Boulevard. It receives an estimated 18,000 stray, lost or abandoned pets a year. Animals—either pets or captured strays—are usually dropped off, but the pound does have a van that can come and collect strays or pets with a 24-hour notice. The pound’s capacity is about 100 cats and 55 dogs. Unlike non-profit shelters like the SPCA, the Berger is a business, with*out an animal-welfare mandate.

PLATEAU PROTEST

The Plateau borough is a key battleground for Berger opponents. At a Dec. 6 borough council meeting, resident Anjali Choksi deposited a printed version of the petition and claimed the pound doesn’t wait the mandatory 72 hours required by the borough contract before euthanizing animals. “We have multiple testimonies saying there are many animals who enter and are euthanized one or two hours later,” said Choksi.

Émilie Sauvé also spoke at the Dec. 6 meeting. She said she had to make a four-hour round trip to the Berger every three days to search for her lost cat. Sauvé (whose pet returned home on its own) made serious allegations against the BB, claiming, “I saw cats there dying in their cages.” Both Choksi’s and Sauvé’s allegations can be seen online at webtv.coop.

Borough mayor Luc Ferrandez appeared to take the concerns seriously. Ferrandez formed a citizen’s advisory committee on the spot, mandating them to examine animal control in the bor*ough.

The most common complaints against the BB? It doesn’t check for microchips; its primitive website doesn’t display many photos (only a tiny fraction of cats and a total of two dogs); and it insists pet owners travel to the pound to ID their pet, which, given its location in the city’s northeast, is especially hard if you don’t have a car. Critics also complain the pound doesn’t spay or neuter animals before adoption.

Couture defends his pound’s intake procedure. “We always check for microchips before euthanizing an animal,” he says. As for forcing owners to come to the pound in person, Couture acknowl*edges the pound isn’t centrally located, but argues, “It’s the responsibility of the person who lost their pet to come down.” He says the website is under construction and will re-launch by the end of April.

VISITING THE CONDEMNED

In order to find out what it’s like to deal with the Berger Blanc firsthand, I called the pound two weeks ago claiming to have lost a black-and-white, microchipped cat in NDG. Staff said they couldn’t check to see if any animal recently brought in matched that description, because, “They all look the same.” Berger staff said they don’t check for microchips. I was told to travel to the Berger every three days to check for the cat.

While Couture says the facility is clean, my visit to the pound was greeted with a strong smell of urine and feces, noticeable from the moment I entered. In the main room, rows of cats for adop*tion sit in stacked cages. A room on the left houses more rows of lost cats awaiting owner pick-up. The metal cages contain no bedding, and many cats sleep in their own litter boxes for warmth. One cat’s litter box was completely overturned, and dirty litter was scattered across its cage. Dogs are kept in a narrow, L-shaped room. The cages have central drainage holes. Urine flows down the hole and into an uncovered metal bowl. At the time of the my visit, most of the bowls were full.

Berger’s refusal to check animals based on telephone descriptions has led to a legal ruling against the pound. In 2010, a woman won a small-claims court ruling after the pound euthanized her dog, Zazi, despite her multiple telephone calls describing the animal. Couture admits the pound was in the wrong, but says it was an isolated incident in 25 years of business. “It is only one case, and there will be no more.”

CHIPPED AND CHOPPED

SCAN, STERILIZE, SAVE: Caroline Ross
Photo by RACHEL GRANOFSKY
Other animal welfare groups in Montreal also have reservations about Berger Blanc’s alleged practices. Caroline Ross, the founder of Eleven Eleven Animal Rescue, a non-profit organiza*tion specializing in finding homes for difficult-to-adopt animals, says, “My biggest issue with the Berger Blanc is that they are doing nothing when it comes to animal control. They don’t steril*ize their animals, and their adoption fees are higher than most private shelters, who offer animals who are microchipped, neutered and fully vaccinated.”

Ross visited the pound and says she was so “heartbroken” at what she found that she adopted three dogs. She claims that the staff were unhelpful when asked about the animals’ tempera*ment.

Alanna Devine, the SPCA’s director of animal welfare, says, “We scan every animal brought in for microchips.” At the SPCA, animals must be spayed or neutered as well as microchipped and vaccinated before adoption—an essential step to prevent overpopulation not practised by Berger Blanc. “I don’t believe it’s our job to do that,” responds Couture.

Contradicting what some critics claim, Couture says the only time the pound will euthanize an animal upon arrival is if the pet’s owner asks them to—legally, Berger can’t refuse. Oth*erwise, Couture says animals are kept on-premises for three to five days, depending on the contract the Berger has with the area the animal comes from.

Unclaimed animals are evaluated for adoption. Sick animals, dogs aged seven and older and cats aged three and older don’t make the cut. If you surrender your older pet to the pound, it’s automatic euthanasia. “No one wants a seven-year-old dog,” a BB staff member told the Mirror.

Animals are individually euthanized via injection. “We don’t have a gas chamber, we never will,” Couture says.

Another rumour concerns a secret room full of cats that’s off-limits to visitors. Asked about this, Couture bursts into laughter. “Yes, it is true—this section is for pre-adoption cats,” he says. The room is for unclaimed cats being evaluated for adoption. Couture says visitors cannot enter the room for fear of compromising the cats’ health.

As for the charge that the animals are being sold to labs, Couture says, “Find me someone who can prove that I am selling animals to labs, and I will close the Berger Blanc right away.”

FOES IN HIGH PLACES

Meanwhile, Berger Blanc’s contract with the Plateau borough is up for renewal.

Projet Montréal’s Plateau borough councillor Piper Huggins is in charge of the animal-control dossier. Huggins is tight-lipped about her committee’s work, but acknowledges she has received complaints about the Berger Blanc. The committee will release its report this spring.

Staffed as it is with vocal anti-BBers—Anjali Choksi, Émilie Sauvé and committee president Isabelle Poitras—the committee is expected to insist on new practices before they renew the con*tract. BB’s contract, originally slated to expire in April, has been given a two-month extension while the committee prepares its report.

Regardless of the criteria the borough sets for bidders, the borough may have no choice but to renew with Berger: last time around, in 2009, BB was the only bidder. At the Dec. 6 meeting, Ferran*dez lamented that Berger holds a “quasi-monopoly” on local animal control, and let slip that the borough has asked the SPCA to enter a competing bid, but was turned down. Devine says the SPCA’s animal-welfare mandate doesn’t allow it to consider standardized city contracts—for instance, they won’t euthanize healthy animals surrendered to the pound.

Berger opponents are waiting anxiously to see how the situation turns out. Couture fiercely defends his business, and cautions citizens not to confuse the BB with organizations like the SPCA. “We are not there to save all of the animals,” he says. “We are an animal-control service, not a humane society.” ■

Short URL: http://www.montrealmirror.com/wp/?p=20102

BenMax · #23 May 9th, 2011, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by marko

I posted about my only experience w/bb in this thread. This is obviously a complex issue and i do not have all the facts - that's for sure. I have deliberately not read too much about this situation because these things always bother me. (I realize that's a lousy excuse).

Obviously we want quality pounds, schools and hospitals in our society and if 1 organization is providing sub-standard service....then yes it should be sacked and not serve people that live close by or anyone actually.

The distance factor IS VERY IMPORTANT though and imo shows a lack of concern for animals and pet owners. Not sure what else to say....

edited by admin
If, and I say 'IF' the MSPCA was able to service all these municipalities, regardless of the range it covers..that people would support this. You know that the SPCA is working with rescues and shelters to save the animals in their care.

Maybe you don't know this Marko..but for the past 16 years we have been trying to get someone to listen about this pound. No one would, yet after all these years a group of people never gave up..they kept on hounding officials. There were always those citizens that used the excuse that 'distance' was their issue. So based on this one excuse, we were unable to convince these people to be heard. Hence..16 years later.

I just hope that whatever 'pound' gets a contract work with the SPCA's and rescues. Hopefully they will be transparent so that collectively we can all work towards saving lives.

That is my

.

Melinda · #24 May 9th, 2011, 08:24 AM

are you going friday BenMax??

marko · #25 May 9th, 2011, 08:31 AM

Saving lives is a good thing.

BenMax · #26 May 9th, 2011, 08:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melinda

are you going friday BenMax??

I am now living close to Ottawa so will not be able to attend this time around. Funny thing..you work so hard for this moment, and are absent to embrace all those that have been fighting all these years. Alot of my rescue friends will be there and know I am there with them in mind and spirit. What a moment for all.