Two puppies were found abandoned in a rural area of Kamloops.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Taneesha Beaupre

Four skinny, abandoned puppies found in a Kamloops rural area on the weekend are now in the care of the BC SPCA, but if observations and predictions prove correct, they can expect a lot more.

Taneesha Beaupre was exploring the Robbins Range area near Barnhartvale with her family on Sunday, July 23, and parked at a lake when the black and white puppies ran out to them from a ditch near a culvert.

“The puppies came out from a spot where the grass was well pressed down, I’m guessing they’d been there for a few days. They looked like were starving, it’s super sad,” she said. When the puppies were given water they threw it up.

Beaupre took the pups to a relative’s ranch in Kamloops and from there they went to the local SPCA shelter for veterinary care. 

Two more puppies believed to be from the same litter were picked up by Murray Ganske at his Barnhartvale property the night before when they ran out to him as he was opening a gate. He asked the neighbours for information, then fed the pups and later dropped them off at the SPCA.

“They were beyond skinny,” he said. “Dumping pups on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere is pathetic and ridiculous. Something needs to be done about this.”

The act of dumping dogs in remote areas appears to be on the rise in the wake of the pandemic puppy boom with rescues struggling to care for sky high numbers of abandoned dogs.

This dumped dog was rescued in Vernon on July 15 and taken into the care of the Regional District of North Okanagan.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ RDNO

Less than two weeks ago, a Vernon resident rescued a stray dog that had been dumped in a semi secluded area in Okanagan Landing. 

Vanessa Robert, experienced dog catcher and dog behaviourist with Crate Escape in Vernon, was part of a two-week-long mission to help catch it.

“We're seeing more dumped dogs, usually found in secluded areas," she told iNFOnews.ca last week. "It’s a sad result of a COVID puppy boom where people wanted dogs to have a companion at home with them. Backyard breeders kicked up their production to an overwhelming amount of dogs. The puppy boom slowed down and there were no buyers. Some people will surrender dogs to rescues but sadly some are just abandoning them.”

Debbie Fortin runs K 9-1-1 Animal Rescue, a private rescue in Sicamous. She has been involved with animal rescues for three decades and has seen an increase in dumped dogs over the past two years.

“Cats, kittens and dogs and pups are just being abandoned on logging roads and or dumpsters, it's the most awful situation we have seen,” she said. “People don't know what to do when the shelter says it's full and then can't find homes for their animals and can't afford food or vet costs.”

Fortin believes the problem is directly connected to the pandemic and financial challenges.

“The SPCA has turned away many due to over-full conditions and then people feel stuck,” she said. “A lot panic and make horrible decisions and other people are just horrible people. Things are out of hand and rescues are taking on way too much responsibility. Vet costs have tripled and people literally cannot afford to get their animals fixed.”

READ MORE: Pet boarding facility near Kamloops overwhelmed by support during wildfire evacuation

Fortin said her rescue recently took in a pup from a ranch with working dogs worth $2,000.

“They couldn't sell them, they were trying to give them away and couldn’t,” she said.

READ MORE: Pandemic pets adopted through B.C. SPCA have indeed found forever homes

In the first three months of this year, the BC SPCA took in almost 350 puppies, up from 200 during the same time last year.

“Many of the puppies coming into SPCA care are from individuals who turned to breeding to make money during the COVID pandemic when the demand for pets was high but who are now are overwhelmed with the costs of caring for animals as the market for their puppies has decreased,” Eileen Drever with the SPCA said in a media release issued April 5. “There are just too many people who still think this is a good way to earn quick money and don’t understand the amount of care required and the costs involved.”

READ MORE: B.C. SPCA struggling with huge influx of COVID puppies from breeders

Kamloops SPCA manager Branch Daria Evans said the puppies have been seen by the vet and other than being underweight, are healthy and thriving. It’s unclear when they'll be available for adoption.

While she couldn’t say whether more dumped dogs are coming into the branch, she said more dogs in general are and hopes owners will contact the SPCA before taking any dire measures with their pets.

“We’re not here to judge, accidents can happen, life changes happen, the cost of living is a factor and finding pet-friendly housing is hard,” she said. “We can sympathize with those pressures and want what’s best for the animal. Sometimes there’s a waiting list but we do our best to find placements and look at other options.”

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