THS reopens under OSPCA direction

After a five-week closure, the Toronto Humane Society opened its doors once again this week with 125 cats and 25 dogs available for adoption. The matter of the charges laid against five top officials of the THS for animal cruelty is still before the courts. More than 800 other animals are waiting to be cleared after veterinary testing or are part of the ongoing investigation.

By Monday evening, 5 cats and 2 dogs had been adopted – dozens showed up during the first hour after the shelter reopened.

James Mbelos arrived a half hour before the shelter opened its doors to be sure he would be able to find the dog he wanted. Within minutes, he found Dixie, a labrador cross.

“Right away, I knew that it was the right dog,” he said.

Dixie was the first animal to be adopted since the closure, the first of 2010 and the second animal Mbelos has adopted from the THS. His last dog, Hutchy, was a THS adopted dog who lived for 18 years, but was put down 5 years ago with kidney problems. Mbelos doubled the $100 donation because he says he got the dog he wanted.

The shelter was initially shut down on November 26, 2009 as the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals concluded a six-month investigation into allegations of cruelty to animals by the agency’s former president, their chief veterinarian, general manager and two other staff.

A lead investigator described the facility as a ‘house of horrors’ citing dozens of cases of ‘disease-infested’ animals left to die rather than be euthanized. Others were denied adequate food and water. In addition, investigators found a mummified cat in a ceiling trap.

Though some staff were permitted to re-enter on December 29, 2009, the shelter remains under the direction of the Ontario SPCA.

Monthly donations have continued and are also being accepted with each adoption.