This article written in french by Corinne Prince was automatically translated using AI
In response to a question from Christine Péron, a Laval resident advocating for the implementation of a Trap-Neuter-Return-Maintain (TNRM) program in the region, city councillor Christine Poirier confirmed that the City is working on a pilot project during the municipal council meeting held on April 1.
“Mr. Mayor, you are the boss: it’s up to you to make a decision on this matter,” said Christine Péron at the most recent municipal council session. “Please, tell your animal services group that you are ready to sign a TNRM contract with the SPCA. Stop wasting time on this issue. This is not the time to evaluate solutions anymore. The solution is the TNRM program with the Montreal SPCA.”
“It’s true that this issue hasn’t progressed fast enough in recent years, in my opinion,” admitted Mayor Stéphane Boyer. “Our animals are important to us, we care about them, and we are facing the challenge of many stray cat colonies in several wooded areas.”
Christine Poirier, city councillor for Duvernay–Pont-Viau, then spoke to confirm that contact had already been made with the Montreal SPCA and that the City would reveal details of a pilot project in the coming weeks or months.
“We’re evaluating different options,” she said. “This is important to us. We want to take action. Our pilot project would involve citizens in caring for stray cats, engaging those who are already involved in the issue.”
Background
This is not the first time Laval has embarked on a pilot project related to animal control. However, there is broad agreement that the first attempt, launched in 2017, was a failure.
According to the mayor’s office, the managers of the 2017 pilot project experienced “significant failures,” including a “lack of compliance with animal control regulations and related provincial laws,” as well as “shortcomings in animal safety” at the time.
Since then, the status quo has been maintained, despite a motion adopted unanimously by city council in July 2022—much to the dismay of dedicated stray cat volunteers and opposition members who are calling for more political will.
“In these circumstances, we understand that if it were simple, we would have already made progress,” said Gabrielle Brais Harvey, Director of Communications in Mayor Stéphane Boyer’s office. “Our top priority remains the safety of both animals and citizens in the next project to be rolled out. The goal is to develop an effective, economically viable approach that respects animal welfare.”
Pilot Project
Is the idea of a pilot project well received? Opinions are mixed.
Louise Lortie, city councillor for the Marc-Aurèle-Fortin district and sponsor of the motion in July 2022, is not opposed to the idea but criticized the tentative timeline mentioned by Boyer’s team.
“Hearing, after all this time, that the administration is still evaluating the feasibility of a pilot project is hard to accept—it just adds insult to injury,” said Lortie a few days after the council meeting. “It’s borderline indecent. The solutions already exist. What’s missing isn’t expertise or citizen engagement—it’s political will. A well-structured project involving citizens is a relevant idea. It’s exactly what I’ve been proposing from the start. We need to stop delaying and take concrete action.”
“It’s not a good idea, because they already tried a pilot project like this in 2017–2018 and it ended in fraud,” recalled Christine Péron. “The people managing the program were pocketing the money.”
The volunteer also questioned what benefits a pilot project would bring compared to signing a contract with the Montreal SPCA, a nonprofit that has been running a TNRM program for over 10 years in the neighboring metropolis.
When asked about the details, budget, and timeline for the pilot project, the mayor’s office remained silent, only stating that “a presentation to municipal authorities is expected soon.”
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