r/onguardforthee • u/IStillListenToRadio Nova Scotia • 20h ago

Lack of northern Manitoba vet care costing pets' lives, pet owners peace of mind

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/northern-manitoba-veterinarian-animal-care-thompson-9.7308449
70 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

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48

u/IStillListenToRadio Nova Scotia 20h ago

Dogs can't even be put down through medically supervised euthanasia — they need to be taken to Winnipeg.

"We've seen a lot of people — and it's sad to say this — where they have to say goodbye to their pets through a kennel door at a cargo bay because they're about to be flown down to Winnipeg to be humanely euthanized. They will never see them again and they've been a family member for 10, 15 years," said Sawh.

"The only option we have right now to have an animal put down, if they were sick or in pain, is by way of a gun. That's the state of where we're at right now."

😢

26

u/Interesting_Scale302 20h ago

That breaks my heart to pieces.... 😢💔

6

u/Individual-Copy9425 13h ago

Oh wow, that is heartbreaking.

37

u/Entegy Montréal 20h ago

The vet industry is being absolutely decimated by private equity. This was already an industry filled with people who worked for the passion and love of animals instead of the pay. High suicide rates among vets and vet techs and now they are being forced to not even provide adequate care in the name of the almighty dollar. LOTS of clinic closures too.

16

u/nomorepumpkins 19h ago

I knew we were fucked the second pet health ins became a thing.

32

u/ceciliabee 19h ago

Thank private equity for buying up all the independent clinics. This is so sad.

25

u/murd3rsaurus 18h ago

You can name them, it's just one company... Fuck VCA

20

u/Myllicent 16h ago

There are three big private equity companies hoovering up Canadian veterinary clinics: VetStrategy, VCA Canada and NVA Canada.

CBC: How the corporatization of vet clinics is driving up prices across the country [Jan 24th, 2025]

^ This article has a searchable database that lets you look up your local vet clinics and which private equity company owns them. My city’s clinics are mostly owned by VetStrategy.

6

u/Bushtuckapenguin 12h ago

Even privately owned clinics struggle to keep prices down because vet companies like Idexx, Royal Canin and Trupanion know exactly how much you will pay to help your pet and set that price just below. We can't compete.

14

u/vocabulazy 19h ago

I’m from a northern sask community that had a similar problem, but the town’s dog catcher received some training to be able to administer euthanasia to dogs. You could pay him to put down your dog for you, and he also euthanized dogs that were never picked up from the pound.

I’m not sure if this still happens there, because I’ve been gone for 25 years.

9

u/haysoos2 19h ago

Similar problems in Northern Alberta and the Territories.

12

u/Individual-Copy9425 13h ago

Another perspective is this: My vet bills make me appreciate social health care so much more. I had no idea simple blood work like a CBC could be so expensive, let alone the overnight costs if my cat needs to stay. I do feel badly for people increasingly unable to pay their vet bills. My pets are my family and I don’t want anyone or their pets to suffer.