Journal staff
Police in Barrie, Ontario say a mother-daughter pair from the Sarnia area are being sought in connection to an animal welfare investigation that involved an ‘elaborate scheme’ and a number of dogs and a cat discovered in a hotel parking lot.
Police say they received a complaint from a citizen reporting the animals were being kept in two motor vehicles parked at a hotel on Byne Drive in Barrie.
“It was evident that a number of the animals were ill and required immediate veterinary care,” a news release noted. “Three dogs were surrendered to the OSPCA Barrie Animal Centre and one, a German Shepherd, required emergency surgery to remove a foreign body from its stomach.
“The female owners of the animals involved in this investigation were evasive and have manipulated the kindness of a number of local agencies and church organizations to obtain supplies and financial support for what appears to have been nothing more than part of elaborate scheme that was based upon a number of mistruths,” police added.
“Barrie Police followed up on the welfare of the animals and the two females who owned them, but it would appear as if they left Barrie without paying the surgical costs that saved the life of the very ill German Shepherd. This dog remains now in the care of the Barrie OSPCA.”
Police are requesting the assistance of the public in locating the involved females who are now wanted for offences under the Provincial Animal Welfare Services (PAWS) Act and the Criminal Code of Canada. The mother and daughter are believed to be travelling together in what are described as a 2008 beige coloured Dodge Caravan and a 2003 gray/silver coloured Toyota Highlander with a small utility trailer.
Barrie Police know from the ongoing investigation the names of the wanted females who are 54 and 23 years of age, have their licence plate information and know that they are from the Sarnia area, police said.
"However, right now, the primary concern is focused on the health and wellbeing of the other animals they are travelling with which includes a number of recently born puppies."
If anyone sees these females or the vehicles that they are travelling in, you are strongly encouraged to contact your nearest police service.