After record sales of pets during the pandemic, business is now more difficult for many Quebec breeders.
Several breeders interviewed by The newspaper at the National Companion Animal Show confirmed that the rising cost of living is also being felt in the pet industry.
According to Nathalie Gagnon, who breeds cats in Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, the increase in costs for veterinary care is holding back consumers, among other things.
“Inflation showed up in sales. It’s even a reason why I’m thinking of quitting, ”she says.
For the owner of Élevage Caniche AMH, Anne-Marie Héneault, the pandemic has completely upset her industry. ” It’s painful. Customers are in a hurry, a bit naughty at times,” she says.
This is without counting the people who want to get rid of the animals that came to fill a void during the pandemic.
“We see dropouts, customers returning to work and budgets are tighter and they want to invest less […] Veterinarians are 30% increase, ”she noted.
More scammers
According to Anima Quebec, a national association for the well-being of animals, the pandemic has also caused an increase in scammers in the world of breeders.
General Manager Chantal Allinger urges people to be careful. “It’s not normal if you can get an animal [de race] very quickly. There may be exceptions, but usually good breeders have waiting lists,” she warns, noting that the vast majority of breeders do it for a good cause and love the animals.
Photo Louis Deschenes
Marie-Élaine Guitard from Élevage Inukshuk with her husband Jason Kouri, their son Jérémy and Roméo, a Japanese spitz.
Ms. Allinger also believes that the animal industry in general needs restructuring. “We see it with the shelters, there is not enough supervision […] Anyone tomorrow morning can open a SPA without experience and it’s the same with farms. »
A popular living room
Photo Louis Deschenes
Member of the “Flying team” Corinne Lamy from Sherbrooke participated in a demonstration with Tokyo, a Malinois from the Belgian Shepherd family.
Despite a sluggish industry, dogs, cats and reptiles have not lost their popularity as the aisles of the National Pet Show were packed with families and enthusiasts on Saturday at the Center de expositions.
After a missed appointment in 2020 and a modest edition in 2021, due to COVID-19, animal lovers had spread the word to visit the 200 or so exhibitors.
“We can see that people were eager to come back. The visitors arrived early and it didn’t let go, ”says Michel Beausoleil, co-promoter of the event which continues on Sunday.
“For exhibitors, we are at full capacity and about 14,000 people should be there this weekend,” he rejoices, adding that the show is on its way to beating the traffic of previous editions.
The competitions and dog shows obviously drew crowds, but very rare breed dogs and reptiles were also popular.