Tues. July 18 - Animal shelters struggling post-pandemic

TOGETHER WITH

Good morning !

During the pandemic, there was an influx of new pet owners looking for a furry friend to keep them company. Now the opposite is happening, with multiple pets in Victoria being surrendered on a daily basis—and putting a strain on our local shelters. Today we’re taking a look at at shelter that’s calling for help.

— Robyn

☀️ Today's weather: Sunny. High 22C / low 12C.

🌫️ Air quality: Low risk today (2/10), no smoke expected.

NEWS

Victoria animal rescuers need money, foster homes

Pamela Saddler says she’s been in the animal rescue biz for nearly 30 years and has never seen it this bad: so many animals needing a vet or a home.

“Owner surrenders, I used to get one a month and now I’m getting a couple every day. I got four today,” said Saddler, who opened Broken Promises Rescue in 2011.

Saddler is seeing a huge uptick in the number of abandoned pets and others being brought to her doors, and she thinks COVID is partly to blame.

Saddler says people got lonely during the pandemic so they got pets, but didn’t properly think it through. She says a lot of people’s situations have changed and they can no longer keep their pets. Others are moving and cannot find housing that allows animals.

When these animals are brought in, Saddler ensures they are seen by a vet as soon as possible. Some need blood work. Others need to be neutered or spayed. Either way, it costs a lot of money.

“I try to help because I don’t want them to become abandoned,” says Saddler, who usually recommends people go to the SPCA, but it’s also seeing a surge in returned pets and strays.

Last year Broken Promises—100% volunteer operated—relied on $90K in donations, and this year it looks like they’ll need as much, if not more.

Broken Promises currently has more than 70 pets under its care—including some 25 cats that Saddler is taking care of in her own home.

Saddler admits animal rescue centres provide an initial relief, but what’s really needed, she says, is a better understanding of how the pet cycle works.

If you decide to bring a dog or cat into your home, you’re in it for the long haul—often, there’s no going back.

“You need to be prepared to keep that cat for 20 years,” she says.

Capital Bulletin

✈️ Pacific Coastal announces Victoria-Kamloops direct flights: Six weekly non-stop flights will begin Oct.17.

🚧 Shelbourne closure extended: The stretch between Pear and Donnelly will remain closed to vehicle traffic until Friday due to underground issues related to the Bowker Creek culvert.

🌲 Temporary delays to Galloping Goose Trail: Crews will be working on the trail today and tomorrow between Luxton and Winter.

🚧 Blanshard and Finlayson to close overnight: The intersection will be closed overnight for paving work on Blanshard, from Tolmie to Finlayson, 7pm to 6am.

NEWS

The Victoria company at the AI forefront

Do you have a great idea for an app but no technical skills to create it? With a new AI tool in development by Frontly, a local business automation platform, creating your app might be as easy as typing your idea into a text box.

Known as Frontly.ai, this tool, powered by Google Sheets, could take a one-sentence description of an app and generate it for you. It may seem like something from a science-fiction movie, but It’s currently in V2 of its development—and with the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT, it’s likely that it will be available sooner than previously expected.

Founder Patrick Kelly said this idea of letting people make apps without code once seemed like an impossible pipe dream, but recent advancements in AI have sped up the process of development. Frontly plans to put AI at the heart of its tech creations, with Kelly saying this reflects the direction of Victoria’s growing tech sector as a whole.

Frontly, which creates front-end platforms for startups to help them launch products faster, received $350,000 in investments at the end of 2022.

Learn more at Victoria Tech Journal.

SPONSORED BY DANCE VICTORIA

Dance Victoria 23/24 season subscriptions now on sale

Bold. Breathtaking. Boundless.

Save up to $146 off regular prices with a Dance at the Royal Series subscription to The World’s Best Dance featuring Gibney Company (New York, US), Compagnie Hervé KOUBI (France/Algiers), Nrityagram Dance Ensemble (India) in collaboration with Chritrasena Dance Company (Sri Lanka), and Ballets Jazz Montréal (Canada).

Subscribers receive additional benefits and save on additional special presentations: Ukrainian Shumka Dancers in Nutcracker (Edmonton/Ukraine); Circa (Australia); and contemporary Indigenous Māori troupe, Ōkāreka Dance Company (New Zealand).

Visit the website or call the Royal Box Office at 250-386-6121. 

Capital Picks

👾 Blossoming Pixels and Nesting Instant: This exhibition at the Flux Media Gallery will feature media artwork from multidisciplinary artists that merge the physical and the digital. Open until Aug. 4.

🎻 Melodies of Paradise Baroque Summer Concert: Members of Victoria Baroque will perform alongside Pacific Baroque Orchestra tonight at Alix Goolden Performance Hall, 7:30-9:30pm.

🎥 The Miracle Club at The Vic Theatre: The drama-comedy film featuring Maggie Smith and Kathy Bates will show today, 5:15pm.

🎒Let’s go outside. Tall Tree’s nature therapy combines clinical counselling with time outdoors. From forest walks to park benches, experience a new path to wellness.*

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Upcoming events for this week

💃 Flamenco Festival: Dance and musical performances will take place at locations across the city from July 22 to 29.

🎤 Apex Breaks at Hermann's Upstairs: The psychedelic jungle funk band will celebrate the release of their first album with Blase Blase and The Random Collective, Saturday, 8pm.

🇯🇵 Japan Fest: This summer matsuri at Broadmead Village Shopping Centre on Saturday will include cultural performances, a raffle, and Japanese food from FUDO. 2-5pm.

🎉 Market SquareFest: This all day community event Saturday includes live music, a maker’s market, drag storytime, and more. 11am-5pm.

🏎️ Oak Bay Collector Car Festival: See over 300 vintage and collector cars Sunday on Oak Bay Ave. near Foul Bay. 8am-3pm. [Details]

In Other News

⛴️ Unclear sailing in Clipper contract talks
If you’re planning a trip to Seattle, you could soon have one fewer way of getting there. In a news release, Unifor Local 114 says ferry service may be disrupted later this summer in response to what it sees as slow bargaining in current contract negotiations with its Clipper workers, who want increased wages, job security, and changes to shift scheduling.

🚨 Two drivers caught nearly tripling speed in Oak Bay
A motorist was found on Friday night going 107 km/h on Beach Drive, marked as a 40 km/h zone. The next evening, around the same time, a different driver was dinged for going the same speed along the street. Both men were fined $483 and will have their vehicles impounded for seven days. [Oak Bay Police]

🚓 RCMP officer hit by motorcyclist in Duncan
Police say that after an officer tried to flag down the motorcyclist—who had been flagged for illegally bypassing an earlier traffic stop—the rider sped up, hitting the officer and knocking him to the ground, causing minor injuries. Two police vehicles were also struck and damaged before the rider fled the scene. [CTV]

💃 Nanaimo Highland dancer wins Canadian championship
Defending champ Annalise Lam took first in the under-21 division of the Canadian championship in Halifax, after winning the fling and reel and placing second in the sword and the seann triubhas. Lam also won the ScotDance Canada championship that same week. [Nanaimo News Bulletin]

SPONSORED BY VICTORIA FOUNDATION

Read Victoria Foundation's 2023 Pulse magazine

Hot off the press! The 2023 edition of Victoria Foundation's Pulse magazine and blog is out now! Pulse magazine is an annual publication highlighting how the foundation and other organizations in our community are working to build on the findings in the annual Vital Signs report.

In Case You Missed It

🏨 Sooke Harbour House to reopen: The announcement follows renovations and a lengthy investigation that found Timothy Durkin had defrauded an investor of $1M. [The Westshore]

📰 Monday’s headlines: US actors strike slows South Island film industry, Island stays relatively safe as BC fires ramp up, HarbourCats take first place, and more. [July 17]

🏊 Ganges Harbour water ruled safe for swimming by Island Health tests, after concerns about human waste being dumped from the Salt Spring harbour’s live-aboards.

⛱️ Parksville sand sculpting: The competition phase of the Wonders of the World contest is finished, and the completed sculptures are on display until Aug. 20.

🧋 8 places to get cool drinks: From bubble tea to specialty pop, Victoria has plenty of options for non-alcoholic drinks on hot summer days like these. [Tasting Victoria]

💸 Victoria ranked 3rd-least affordable city in Canada in a new analysis of StatsCan numbers. Also in Sunday’s newsletter: Island farming prepares for extreme climate. Divorced couple remarries after 40 years.

🥒 Saturday headlines: A regional pickleball strategy is coming, though Victoria will not pursue indoor courts. More and more locals are volunteering to help care for seniors’ dogs. Landfill fire thwarted. [July 15]

🏡 Homes For Sale with Air Conditioning: Enjoy comfort year round with condos and homes that offer A/C or a heat pump. View all active listings for sale.*

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