Pet safety
Worrying about your pet isn't silly. Plenty of women stay longer than they want to because they won't leave an animal behind. Pets are family, and there are more options in Canada than most people know about.
What to know first
- You're not the only one. Studies in Canada consistently find a large share of women delay leaving because of a pet, and shelters know this.
- Threats or harm to a pet are part of the abuse, not something separate. Write them in your Incident Log and tell a shelter worker.
- You don't need everything arranged before asking for help. A crisis line can start making calls for you and your pet in the same conversation.
Shelters that take pets, and fostering partnerships
Some transition houses have pet rooms, kennels, or outdoor runs on site. Many more partner quietly with a humane society or foster network that will care for your pet, usually free, while you get settled.
- Ask directly when you call: can I bring my pet, and if not, do you have a fostering partner? Workers hear this question often.
- SafePet and similar programs run in several provinces, matching pets with temporary foster homes while their person is in shelter. Placements usually run weeks to months and can often be extended.
- Your local humane society or SPCA can often board a pet quietly in an emergency, sometimes same day, without asking you to explain.
- Veterinary clinics sometimes board pets short term for people in unsafe situations. Worth asking your own vet if you trust them.
- If nothing local is available, ask about a placement in a nearby city. Shelter workers can arrange transport more often than you'd expect.
- Ask how you'll get updates and photos while apart, and how the return will work. Good programs make this clear upfront.
Making a safety plan for your pet
A plan for your pet looks like a plan for yourself: knowing where they'd go, who'd take them, and what they'd need.
- Choose one or two people who could take your pet on short notice, and ask them now. A friend, family member, coworker, or neighbour all count.
- Pack a small go bag for your pet: a few days of food, medication, a leash or carrier, bowls, a favourite toy or blanket, and a copy of their records.
- Keep a carrier somewhere you can grab quickly and quietly, or leave one with the person who might take them.
- Store a spare key and written care instructions with that person, so they can pick your pet up even if you can't be there.
- Make sure your pet's ID tag and microchip are registered to you, with a phone number and email your partner doesn't control.
- If you leave in a hurry without your pet, tell the shelter or police right away. Wellbeing checks and pickups can often be arranged.
- In an emergency, your safety comes first. Leaving temporarily without your pet isn't abandoning them, and there are ways to get them back.
What to document about your pet
If there's ever a disagreement about who keeps your pet, paperwork matters most. Gather it quietly over time and store photos in the Vault in this app, or somewhere your partner can't reach.
- Adoption or purchase records, receipts, and any transfer paperwork showing whose name the pet is in.
- Veterinary records and invoices, especially ones showing you booking appointments and paying for care.
- Microchip registration and licence or tag registration in your name, with your contact information.
- Receipts for food, grooming, boarding, insurance, and medication, showing who cares for them day to day.
- Photos and videos of you with your pet over time, and any messages where your partner acknowledges the pet is yours.
- Any incident where your partner threatened, hurt, neglected, or used your pet to control you. Write the date, what happened, and anyone who saw it. Harming an animal is a criminal offence in Canada, and this can support a protection order naming your pet.
- In most of Canada, pets are still treated as property in family court, so ownership records carry weight. Some courts are starting to look at who actually cares for the animal, so keep both kinds of proof.
Reaching out to humane societies and animal shelters
You don't need your full story. A short sentence is enough, staff are used to helping quietly.
- Say it plainly: I'm leaving an unsafe home and need temporary care for my pet. Most organizations take it from there.
- Ask whether they have a safekeeping, safe haven, or crisis boarding program, and the cost. Usually free or very low cost for these situations.
- Ask them to keep your name and your pet's location confidential, and note that no one else may pick your pet up.
- If money's a worry, ask about subsidized veterinary care, pet food banks, and emergency medical funds. Many communities have them.
- Call 211 anytime to be connected to local pet fostering, pet food banks, and emergency animal care.
- If your pet is in immediate danger, call your provincial animal protection line or police. Threats to an animal are taken seriously.
Canadian resources
Wanting your pet safe is part of wanting yourself safe. Take one step, ask one question, let someone help you carry it.