(Left to right) Eva with her horse Sky; Romeo with his dog Noah; Jasmine and her horse Music. (SUPPLIED)
SACA could be
your dog or cat’s best friend BY JEANNIE ARMSTRONG When portrayed in the movies, animal control officers get a bad rap. They’re often cast as the villains of the story. In real life, the exact opposite is true. Saskatoon Animal Control Agency (SACA) team members are actually animal heroes. Every day, they rescue dogs and cats that are running at large. The animals are often confused, afraid, injured, cold or suffering from hunger and thirst. The Saskatoon Animal Control Agency is contracted by the City of Saskatoon to enforce the Animal Control Bylaw and the Dangerous Animal Bylaw,
and to provide animal control services. Pound services are provided by the Saskatoon SPCA. These services are supported through the revenues collected through the issuing of dog and cat licenses by the City of Saskatoon.
HAPPY ENDINGS In 2019, SACA reunited 381 animals with their owners. The pets were able to be identified because their caring owners purchased an annual pet license from the City of Saskatoon. Eva Alexandrovici, SACA president, says that the number of animals identified
through their microchips has also increased. “In 2005, we identified 71 microchipped animals. In 2019, the number increased to 279, so that’s a positive change.” A microchip scan helped Alexandrovici return one cat, missing for over a year, to its owner. “It was pretty obvious that cat had just been sleeping on the streets and was in pretty bad shape. The owner was so happy to get her cat back, she was in tears,” she says. “A big part of our job is to issue tickets under the Animal Control bylaws, and believe it or not, none of us like to issue
Heather and her dog Pickles.
(SUPPLIED)
tickets. It’s not the best part of the job, but it is an important part of bylaw enforcement. So when we get to make somebody happy by reuniting them with their pet, it makes the day that much better.” Another way that Alexandrovici
Pets like to ROAM. A license gets them HOME. Annual pet licenses as low as $18/year. saskatoon.ca/petlicensing
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PET IDENTIFICATION • A PET LICENSE BENEFIT
PET WELLNESS | MAY 2021
