A local fundraising event collected more than $7,500 to support the 15 Cane Corso dogs which the SPCA seized from a Clearwater resident, according to organizers.
Clearwater Mayor Merlin Blackwell and BC SPCA senior manager Ashley Fontaine attended. On Saturday, Feb. 18, groups of 20 to 30 people filtered through the event throughout the afternoon, organizer Lee Christensen said.
“It was absolutely amazing, we could not have asked for anything better,” Christensen told the surgeryitaly in an over-the-phone interview after the event.
The event had a pleasant neighbourhood energy, said Christensen. Two classes at Raft River Elementary provided student artwork of dogs for Christensen to display on the walls of the Elks Lodge venue.
The event offered lunch and door prizes. Tickets for the event were $10, but community members also donated by participating in the auction and buying goodies at the bake sale.
Donations are still coming in, but Christensen’s initial total already exceeds her planned goal of $5000.
“It was a one-off thing for those 15 dogs who were so sadly and brutally mistreated,” Christensen said.
Last month, BC SPCA removed seven 10-week-old puppies and eight dogs under three years of age from a Clearwater resident who was breeding and selling dogs for profit, according to the organization.
Christensen organized the event with the help of several other women, including Elaine Pidcock and Jane Gale. Christensen felt compelled to do something after she learned about the dogs’ severe starvation, as reported by the BC SPCA.
“We want to bring to light the fact that the [district] of Clearwater does not tolerate this,” Christensen said.“It did put a bad light on us, I felt. It should not be tolerated.”
Fontaine agreed the BC SPCA could target the donations to the 15 dogs it rescued last month, which was important to Christensen. She wanted to help the community unite against this specific case of alleged animal neglect.
“It really did pull the town together. People were pretty passionate about this. It was pretty horrible,” Christensen said.
Christensen believes dogs should not be treated merely as a commodity. Backyard breeding is a serious problem, so doing nothing is not an option for the district mayor and council, Christensen added.
Editors note: this story has been updated to list Jane Gale as one of the three core organizers. A previous version of this story incorrectly listed Robin Hulke (who volunteered during the event) as one of the three core organizers. We regret the error.
