Five 10-week-old puppies are ready to be adopted tomorrow morning at the Ontario SPCA Sudbury Animal Centre. The three males and two females are playful, vibrant Husky-Shepherd mixes.
The dogs will be available for adoption at 11 a.m. on Wednesday. Those interested will fill out an adoption survey to determine if the match between pup, personality and home would be a successful one.
They arrived from the north through the Year of the Northern Dog program, an initiative of the Ontario SPCA in collaboration with a number of different partners.
The program is meant to help bring awareness to Northern Canada and Northern Ontario about animal wellness services that are lacking in the north, explained Tonya Martin, director of community planning at Ontario SPCA.
Resources such as water and dog food can be limited within fly-in communities, and sometimes access to veterinary services requires flight with an animal.
"The connection with us and Northern Ontario and Northern Canada is actually communities reaching out and saying, 'There's a huge dog overpopulation,'" said Martin. "These are caring, compassionate communities that just want to help the animals. So we are transferring and collaborating with them."
So far this year, 200 dogs have been transferred to southern Ontario through the Year of the Northern Dog.
Volunteer drivers and donations of dog food and dog items are needed. Anyone interested in helping with the program can check out www.yearofthenortherndog.ca for information about how to help.
