Animals Found Abandoned & In Distress At Downtown Store
Posted August 18, 2006 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
How could anyone abandon more than a hundred animals and leave them in terrible conditions?
That’s what Toronto Humane Society officials want to know, as they probe a horrific case of alleged animal abuse at a west end store.
Crews rescued 133 pets of various types from the “Everything Under the Sun” shop at Bloor and Dufferin Sts.
They could hardly believe what they saw inside the deserted premises. There were dead flies everywhere, a dead rat in one cage and a deceased bird in another.
Rabbits were running freely.
Other animals were discovered sitting in their own filth and penned up birds and snakes were being kept in the same enclosure.
And that wasn’t all they found.
“They were dirty, dehydrated. They were hungry,” relates the Society’s Lindy Elmy. “And some of the birds, the finches, that were being housed together with other species of finches were pecking each other’s tails out.”
The T.H.S. was informed of the problem after a member of the public phoned in a tip saying no one had been in the store for three days. Most of the creatures were without food or water for at least that long.
“They were hungry and very thirsty,” Elmy outlines. “That was the basic condition and that was themain concern, to get them food and water and housed properly.”
Overall, two dogs, seven kittens, 58 small domestic animals – like rabbits, hamsters and rats – were recovered, along with 32 birds and 34 reptiles.
“The smell was overwhelming of feces,” Elmy relates.
Some who have dealt with the business in the past say they were wary of coming back to the facility.
“I breed a few species of lizards, I just won’t sell my animals to this store,” points out reptile breeder Paul Collier. “I’ve been disgusted on other occasions. I stopped dealing with this pet store, for reasons of their sanitation.”
John Putkowski runs a hot dog stand outside the shop. He likes the owners but noticed they haven’t been around for a while. “The owner is no coming,” he asserts. “Just the workers.”
The store has also been keeping odd hours and a phone recording apologizes for the confusion, but doesn’t say why it’s happening.
And while officials are glad they’re safe, the furry crowd’s presence presents an entirely new dilemma. The T.H.S. was already “bursting at the seams” with animals and this latest incident has made things even worse.
They’re hoping to place as many of the creatures as possible with animal lovers, allowing you to take a pet home for free during an Open-Your-Heart Adopt-a-thon this weekend. It runs until Sunday at 11 River St.
In the meantime, officials are trying to find those responsible for abandoning the animals in the first place.
Elmy admits her people have heard about the facility before. “It has been an ongoing problem with this particular location,” she concludes. “We’v e had complaints in the past.”
But the T.H.S. says the concerns were addressed and those running the store fixed the problems.
But something changed and what officials discovered this week could result in charges being laid.
Unless they are, the Society won’t be able to adopt out the specific animals seized from the store.
Adoption Hours:
Friday: until 9pm
Saturday: 11am-7pm
Sunday: 11am-6pm
For more information, click here.
If you suspect an animal is being harmed or is in distress, there are several places you can contact. Among them:
And in a pinch, you can even call Crime Stoppers at (416) 222-TIPS.
