After puppy adoption records during the pandemic, dog breeders in Quebec are now facing a marked drop in demand, prompting some of them to put their breeding activities on hold.
Waiting lists that were sometimes calculated in years during the health crisis are now a thing of the past for many breeders.
“Since February I haven’t had a litter. I only have one reservation, so I haven’t chosen to make a litter yet, because I don’t want to be stuck with puppies,” explains Nathalie Beaulé, who owns a Clumber spaniel breeding farm in Saint- Marc-sur-le-Richelieu.
And yet, in 2020 and 2021, she had no problem finding families for her puppies.
“I had a lot of requests, I was short of puppies,” she says, adding that she only does one litter a year.
His dog gave birth to four puppies in her last litter and she had great difficulty selling the last one.
“And we are just two breeders of this breed in Canada,” argues Mr.me Beaule.
Families wanted
Danick Pelletier owns a breeding of English springer spaniels in the Saint-Étienne district, in Lévis. He had a litter last August and had 17 reservations in his book.
“Everyone has postponed, except two,” he says. He managed – not without effort – to place his other puppies.
He now has a litter of six 3 week old puppies. Two beasts are still waiting to find a family. He who once had two years of waiting saw completely the opposite.
“It’s a total shock right now. I have 10 customers who have canceled”, he drops.
Stevens LeBlanc/JOURNAL DE QUEBEC
Danick Pelletier, breeder of English springer spaniels in Saint-Étienne-de-Lauzon, is struggling to find families for his 3-week-old puppies, when he had long waiting lists in the past. STEVENS LEBLANC/JOURNAL DE QUEBEC/QMI AGENCY)
Golden retrievers too
Golden retrievers, which are very popular dogs, are no exception. Monique Drolet, who owns a breeding farm in Beaumont, must multiply her efforts to find families, while respecting her selection criteria.
“I had a very big waiting list before. Unfortunately, I must admit that now, for a range of six, I can call up to 24 contacts”, she observes.
Mme Drolet has a litter coming up, but there won’t be any more this year. She has reservations, but remains fearful.
“Once again, will I have lots of cancellations?” she worries.
However, if she wants to ensure the sustainability of her breeding, one of her female dogs who are about to retire will eventually have to breed.
“I have no choice, this is her last litter. If I don’t mate him, I will never have the next generation puppy I want,” she explains.
The current difficult economic context is not unrelated to the decrease in demand among breeders, according to an organization for animal welfare.
“Herders live in the same society as us. Costs have gone up for everything. It’s not just the food, it’s also the costs of the veterinarian and everything that surrounds breeding, ”observes Chantal Allinger, general manager at ANIMA-Québec.
According to Mme Allinger, the economic context is also an element that forces some breeders to think about the future of their business.
“It is certain that the breeders who produced a lot of puppies, well it may be that with [l’inflation]they realize that it may be less worth it,” she continues.
A tighter framework
This new reality comes at the same time as the provincial government’s recent announcement regarding animal welfare, which notably provides for the addition of about twenty MAPAQ inspectors. The objective is in particular to tighten compliance with the Animal Welfare and Safety Act to which breeders are subject.
“There are some who realize that they will not be able to meet these requirements, so they have decided to either take a break to try to improve their breeding, or to close down altogether,” she continues. .
This government announcement could also make dog owners think who would like to have their animal reproduced, without having the qualifications of breeders. This phenomenon has occurred very frequently, according to several breeders questioned by The newspaper.
Chloé Demontigny Côté, president of Certified Canine Breeders of Quebec, points out that there are also a lot of dropouts, which has an impact on demand, according to her.
“When we have a turnaround like that, abandonment, people are not in adoption mode,” she observes.