Complaint management

To file a complaint regarding animal abuse, please contact MAPAQ.

The SPA des Cantons serves as animal control for more than thirty municipalities in the area; we therefore have the mandate to enforce the applicable municipal by-laws in each of these municipalities.

The complaints we most frequently receive concern stray cats and dogs and nuisances such as barking or other noise, lack of control, waste management, or the number of animals.

Stray animals

An animal is considered to be roaming as soon as it is off its owner’s or guardian’s property without being under their direct control. We show tolerance toward cats, which are often allowed to roam outdoors, but nothing would prevent us from capturing them or taking them into our care if we deem it necessary. Do you let your cat go outside? You are exposing it to the risk of being captured!

A roaming complaint may be handled without taking the animal into our care, or it may be handled immediately with the animal being taken into our care and brought to our facility.

In the case of a complaint without taking the animal into our care, we require proof of roaming (photos or videos), as well as a formal statement from the complainant detailing the incident(s), including the date(s) and time(s) of the roaming.

When a roaming animal is taken into the care of the SPA des Cantons, we post the animal on our website as a found roaming animal, and it will be kept at our Granby facility during the “holding period,” which varies from one municipality to another, generally three to five calendar days. This is the period during which we actively search for the animal’s owner in order to return it. The owner or guardian may reclaim the animal upon payment of a recovery fee, intended to cover our expenses incurred for housing the animal (clean and decontaminated cage or enclosure, food, water, care, staff time, administrative file-management fees, posting on our website, etc.).

At the end of the holding period, if the animal has not been reclaimed, it becomes the property of the SPA des Cantons; the SPA may then proceed by placing it for adoption, transferring it to a shelter that can invest in the animal’s rehabilitation, or euthanasia if the animal is at the end of its life, in pain, or if its behaviour jeopardizes the safety of the staff who must care for it.

Nuisances

For a nuisance complaint, we require that the situation that is the subject of the complaint be documented: photos or videos, the date(s) and time(s) of the event(s), as well as a formal statement from the complainant. All complaints are handled confidentially. However, please note that if a ticket is issued based on a complaint and the offender contests it, the complainant may be summoned to appear in court as a witness. Only in this situation is confidentiality lifted.

Number of animals

In general, complaints related to the number of animals are based on one or more nuisance(s). Be sure to document the entire situation thoroughly.