Before I start today, I’d like to acknowledge that I will be sharing my time with my parliamentary assistant the MPP for Brampton North and the MPP for Etobicoke–Lakeshore.

It’s an honour to rise in the Legislature this morning to kick off second reading of Bill 159. Bill 159 is an act that brings forward thoughtful and specific amendments that, if passed, will enhance the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act and, in short, this bill is titled the Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act, or what we like to call the PUPS Act.

Because our government of Ontario stands as a national leader in the protection of animals, today we’re taking a stand against unethical dog breeding practices. This act seeks to crack down on puppy mill operations and the horrific distress and harm that results from them across the province.

As I begin to talk about why we’re here today and why we’re debating this today, I want to go back to public safety, because public safety is our government’s priority—to ensure that we all have a right, just like we did today, to leave for this Legislature safely and, for those who still have kids at home, to make sure that they got off to school, and to check in on our parents as well. At the end of today, we all want to go home safely, we want to be able to shop and we want to be able to pray safely. For us and our commitment to public safety, nothing is more important, and animal welfare is just that. It’s a serious part of our government’s priority of public safety.

Monsieur le Président, rien pour moi, en tant que solliciteur général, n’est plus important que la sécurité de notre province. Nous vivons une époque sans précédent, mais nous avons des opportunités toutes aussi uniques. Nous continuerons de faire ce qui est difficile, et nous continuerons de réaliser ce qui est difficile, pour assurer la sécurité de notre province. Et, je tiens à rendre hommage à toutes celles et à tous ceux qui assurent la sécurité de nos collectivités.

Monsieur le Président, pour moi, c’est l’honneur de servir, l’honneur d’apprendre et l’honneur d’écouter.

Qui dit Ontario sécuritaire dit Ontario fort.

A safe Ontario is a strong Ontario. This includes why we’re here today. We’re here today to talk about a government that has prioritized the seriousness of animal welfare. We’ve prioritized a seriousness in conversation on the expectation that we have of Ontarians and everyone coming into Ontario to understand where we stand and how we stand when it comes to caring for our animals and our pets and considering them loved ones and our own families. This is important.

But Mr. Speaker, you won’t find the term “puppy mill” in the law or on the books, neither in Canada nor in the US. But the horrors these types of operations inflict on dogs are well known, and it’s not right. A puppy mill is a general term used to describe a dog breeder that engages in overbreeding of dogs, neglect and the absence of proper care and attention, causing immense suffering to innocent creatures, to innocent animals.

Puppy mills are a world apart from the thousands of responsible dog breeders who put a great amount of time and care and planning into breeding their dogs. They invest in quality kennels and other supports such as veterinary care. They’re selective in the dogs they breed and routinely screen for potential buyers in a good way to ensure that animals are going to a good home.

While puppy mill is a colloquial term, the effects these operations have on dogs can be devastating. Dogs in puppy mills are often locked up in cages and badly treated. Sometimes they’re sick and undernourished.

I’m looking around the chamber this morning. So many of my colleagues are proud owners of dogs, and they care for them like their own family because they are family. But puppy mills have a connotation—again, it is this colloquial term that these operations can be devastating to the dogs.

What makes matters worse is that every day, Ontarians are unknowingly purchasing dogs out of these facilities with intentions of adding new members to their family—please, God, those dogs should be with the family for a very long time—only to be a victim of purchasing an unhealthy animal that may require extensive veterinary care over the course of its life.

Again, I want to draw and delineate the distinction between people who are buying dogs or acquiring dogs or adopting dogs from wonderful, wonderful people who do this legitimately. We’re not talking about those people; we’re talking about the people who are unethical, and that’s why we’re here today.

The animals themselves do not deserve to be treated as victims just because they’re born. The harsh reality is that dogs in puppy mills are unlikely to experience proper animal welfare standards during their critical first few months of life, first few days of life. This can lead to extensive health issues down the road. It’s time for the operators who are making huge profits off the industry to face the consequences of their abuse and shameful practices.

I think it’s noteworthy that everyone here this morning takes a moment to think of their own pets. In my family, we don’t have a dog. We have a rabbit that my daughter adopted when she was very young—now she’s in fourth year at Queen’s University—but that rabbit has become part of our family. If we had adopted a dog, we would treat it with the same degree of seriousness.

There is not a clear picture of how many puppy mills exist in the province due to the often hidden nature of these operations. These are clandestine operations, in some cases. What we do know for a fact is that puppy mills have become a growing industry in the province, and it’s time to provide our authoritative body of animal welfare inspectors with the tools they need to fight back against this troubling issue.

Online advertising and sale platforms make it easy for dog breeders to run unethical puppy mill operations. Whatever is driving the growth in puppy mills, it has to end.

Our government is introducing amendments to the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, a piece of legislation that I’m proud of. I’m proud that we have something on our books called the PAWS Act. I’m proud that our government stands up every day for the people, for our animal welfare inspectors, who get dressed in the morning, go to work and help ensure that our animals are treated fairly. When we look at the numbers of what they’ve done just in the last few years, it’s astounding, and they will continue to ensure that the standard, the expectation, the message of how we must treat our animals is adhered to.

The proposed bill will create new definitions of “dog” and “transfer,” and provide greater clarity in the legislation. If passed, this bill will create more tools—this Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act—and the amendments will create more tools to stop harmful practices associated with puppy mills and penalize those who are abusing dogs in this regard, and make sure that dogs across the province receive the proper care and attention they deserve.

Let me give some context and some background to the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act or the PAWS Act. Before I outline in greater detail the proposed Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act, or the PUPS Act, I’d like to provide a bit of background and clarity to this House.

Our government was the first in Canada—and I spoke about this a few minutes ago—to create a full provincially run, government-based animal welfare enforcement system. And I want to give a shout-out to our Premier because he made it happen. He’s a dog owner himself.

Specifically, the government’s Provincial Animal Welfare Services—PAWS—Act came into force on January 1, 2020. I want to also acknowledge my predecessor, our Deputy Premier, for her commitment to bringing that act to life. Without her personal involvement and her interest, this would have never happened. So I want to thank the member from Dufferin–Caledon, our Deputy Premier, for her work on that.

This act implemented a new enforcement model with inspectors that provide province-wide coverage, including those with specialized expertise in livestock, equines and more, and today, across the province, as I’ve already said, Ontario’s animal welfare inspectors enforce the PAWS Act.

The PAWS Act also enabled courts to impose the highest financial penalties for offenders of any Canadian province or territory. We also updated prohibitions and obligations, such as inhibiting the return of dogfighting equipment to a person who has been convicted of an offence, and we made it an offence to harm or attempt to harm a service animal or one that works with peace officers, such as a police horse or police dog.

PAWS also increased the public trust in the system by establishing new oversight of inspectors that have increased the transparency and accountability of the system, as well as one-window complaints mechanisms for the public.

The legislation has established a multidisciplinary advisory table made up of a wide range of experts, including veterinarians, agriculture representatives, academics, animal advocates and others who provide advice to the ministry on a continuing basis. That was just the start. We remain committed to creating and maintaining and enhancing a strong animal welfare system that protects animals. We appreciate the work that they do every day. I want to highlight that again: We appreciate the work that our animal welfare inspectors do every day.

In June of last year, we passed the Strengthening Safety and Modernizing Justice Act that included amendments to build on the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act and enhance its capabilities. This act clarified Animal Care Review Board processes and permits the immediate removal of an animal by an animal welfare inspector if it is in critical distress. It also creates a requirement for animal owners and custodians to inform animal welfare services when ownership of an animal changes and provide contact information for the new caretaker in cases where there is a compliance order outstanding. This helps ensure that animal welfare issues are addressed. Owners cannot shirk their responsibilities simply by changing the name of an owner of an animal.

Further, the act improves the recovery costs incurred to provide care for animals in distress that have been removed by animal welfare services by providing greater specificity on the types of costs that go into removing an animal. And I’ll add that the proposed PUPS Act also contains clarifying amendments to the PAWS Act that build on the changes from last June and enable the use of the Ministry of Finance’s enhanced debt collection tools. People that need to pay a fine must pay that fine, and this will help animal welfare services recover unpaid debts to the crown such as animal care costs itemized in statements of account that are issued to an accused.

Owners of dogs are subject to all measures in the PAWS Act, including general prohibition against causing distress. Now, through this proposed new legislation, Ontario would become the first jurisdiction in Canada to insert the term “puppy mill” into the legislation.

You know what, Madam Speaker? I think this is really historic but let me tell you why it’s so important. Let me tell you about the landscape of dog breeding, which we know is complex. The member from Timiskaming–Cochrane will know, as a member in rural Ontario, why this is important. As I’ve previously mentioned, many kennels that could be characterized as puppy mills do not operate as a registered business, and large volumes of dog sales occur online. This is a problem—I’ve said it before; I’ll repeat it again. Potential owners may never meet a puppy’s biological parents or tour the facility where they were born or raised, and this is through no fault of their own.

I want to give a special mention to my colleague and friend from Etobicoke–Lakeshore. For many years as the parliamentary assistant to the Solicitor General, both to myself and to my predecessor, the Deputy Premier, she paid special attention and she had a surgical focus of wanting to see this PUPS Act come alive. I want to thank her so much today.

Proper dog breeding is expensive. As I noted earlier, responsible breeders often, and I might add likely always, treat their dogs like their family—ensuring that they’re housed in a comfortable, proper kennel with all the necessary conditions for them to grow and succeed. Sometimes these facilities are even located within a breeder’s home, and dogs are fed and cared for. A good dog breeder does not overbreed and will spend many hours with the new mothers and pups, making sure that they’re in good health, especially in those critical early days of life.

The term “puppy mill”—and again we have to differentiate what is an ethical breeder from an unethical breeder—is largely associated with high-volume breeders, or unethical breeders, turning out hundreds of puppies a year in substandard dog-breeding operations. Whether it’s high volume or not, whether a breeder is turning out dogs for profit or not, whether they’re enabling poor sanitary conditions and spreading of disease, as we say, the proof is in the pudding; you know when an actor is a bad actor and they need to be called out, and that’s why we’re here today.

As I’ve mentioned, all dog owners are subject to the measures outlined in the PAWS Act, and these include prohibitions against causing distress, as well as ensuring that the general standards of care are being met. In fact, this is something that applies, and I’ve said it before, to all animals that are covered by the PAWS Act, but currently there is no prohibition in the act that relates to practices that are found in a puppy mill.

For example, puppy mills are known to overbreed female dogs. Some Ontario municipalities, and even other Canadian provinces, set limits on the number of litters that an unsterilized female can have within a set time period. As an example, in 2011, the city of Toronto banned pet stores from selling puppies from puppy mills, and good for them. Responsible breeders do not sell their puppies to pet stores. But this is an Ontario-wide issue, and a patchwork of municipal bylaws is not going to solve it alone. Our government understands this. Our government takes it seriously. Our government is acting, and it’s time for our government to step in again when others have not.

The proposed Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act—or again, the PUPS Act—if passed, will stop harmful dog-breeding practices associated with puppy mills, impose new legislated minimum penalties and make sure that dogs across Ontario receive the care and attention they deserve.

There are so many examples that we can talk about, about what makes an unethical breeder be an unethical breeder. It’s so obvious, and yet it happens, and it’s so unfair to the animals and it’s unfair to the families who feel that they want to love that dog, but don’t know the story behind it.

Continuous breeding without appropriate breaks can also result in too many litters and overcrowding, creating unsanitary conditions and health issues for puppies that are not good. Dogs need to be psychologically capable of breeding and raising a litter. Some pre-breeding health tests, such as hip screening, can only be done once a dog is 12 months old. Giving dogs the time to mature prior to breeding allows a breeder to get to know the temperament and behavioural traits of the animal that will help make strategic and educated breeding decisions. In some circumstances, it is an industry best practice to wait until the second or even third cycle of a female dog before breeding.

This proposed act would also prohibit separating a puppy from its mother at too young of an age, and this is important. In the early weeks of a puppy’s life, they are fully dependent on their mom and will begin to learn the social skills from their mother. Experts advise that puppies should not be separated from their mother until they’re at least eight weeks old.

There are so many things that are so important that this government recognizes in animal welfare, but I think it’s the tone and it’s building on the foundation that we’ve set in place. Wherever we go in Ontario, people love their pets. This is something that we cherish. Ontario already has one of the strongest penalties of any Canadian province or territory for animal welfare violations. To encourage compliance with the proposed Bill 159, our legislation includes minimum penalties of $10,000 for violating any of the new puppy mill prohibitions and $25,000 if a violation causes a dog’s death or euthanization.

I cannot emphasize this strongly enough: The proposed legislation does not target responsible dog breeders. It targets the bad actors. Just like we say, as a government that takes public safety very seriously, if people, as an example, feel it’s all right to destabilize our community, to be a violent and repeat offender, to steal our cars, to knock in a door at 5 in the morning, to cause havoc, we know where they belong. They belong in one place. They belong in jail. We will do that, and we will throw away the key.

It’s no different for someone who can’t comply with good breeding practices. That’s why there have to be penalties. That’s why there have to be consequences. That’s why we’re here today. This proposed Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act, or the PUPS Act, will address this issue at the root cause of unethical dog breeding practice.

Madam Speaker, it is an important issue. Animal welfare is an important priority for this government. I’m honoured not only to serve as Solicitor General, not only to recognize how important public safety is but to acknowledge how important animal welfare is. That’s why this government, under the leadership of Premier Ford, will always look for additional ways to strengthen the animal welfare system in Ontario and to ensure that appropriate and effective measures are in place to provide animals with the protection they deserve.

Good morning. Let us pray.

Prayers.

Mr. Kerzner moved second reading of the following bill:

Bill 159, An Act to amend the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, 2019 / Projet de loi 159, Loi modifiant la Loi de 2019 sur les services provinciaux visant le bien-être des animaux.

Further debate? I recognize the member for Brampton North.

Madam Speaker, it’s great to see you this morning.

It’s an honour to rise for the first time in this House in my new official government role as the PA to the Solicitor General. I want to thank my colleagues and thank the Premier for their trust. I hope I don’t screw this speech up too much.

I’m glad to be here on time. Madam Speaker, if you know, it was raining cats and dogs last night and into the morning, so the roads were a little slippery, but we’re glad to be here—and pack it in, guys, this is going to be a long 20 minutes.

As the Solicitor General has said, Bill 159 is a crucial example of our government taking strategic action to enhance the welfare and the well-being and the safety of animals all across the province. Ensuring animal welfare standards are upheld is critical to not only protecting our pets but also protecting our livestock and more. It’s essential to ensure that all animals are receiving the adequate standards of care that they deserve.

Before I begin, I want to make note for this House and all Ontarians to stay vigilant and be aware of puppy mills around their community. If you suspect a puppy mill operating in your community or somebody who has been trying to sell you a sick puppy, or even if you suspect that an animal is being abused, please call and report it to animal welfare services.

Ontario is a national leader in the protection of animals. We currently have the strongest animal welfare legislation in the country. While we have already made significant strides in ensuring the protection of animals across the province, we understand that this is not a static issue. It is this government that understands that the care and consideration of animals is a fluid subject and that more needs to be done. That is exactly why our government is taking action with the PUPS Act here today.

Through the tabling of the proposed Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act, otherwise known as the PUPS Act, Ontario introduced amendments to the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, the PAWS Act, that if passed, will create more tools to help stop the harmful practices specifically associated with the operation of puppy mills. The strategic measures outlined in this bill will assist our animal welfare services in their efforts to make sure that dogs across the province receive the care and the attention that they deserve.

Since 2020, animal welfare services have governed the province under the PAWS Act, ensuring a robust and comprehensive standard is adhered to, but currently the breeding and sale of dogs is not properly provincially regulated in Ontario, which leaves room for bad actors to take advantage of and exploit dogs for profit in conditions of neglect. While all dog breeders, along with dog owners and custodians, are subject to the current requirements in the PAWS Act, including prohibitions on causing animal distress and requirements to meet basic standards of care, there are individuals out there who have no problem abusing them for their own financial gain.

Through this bill, we have a plan to counteract this horrendous behaviour. If you’ve seen some of the conditions that you can find dogs in in puppy mills—I’ve got to tell you, Madam Speaker, the people who run these things are some pretty sick pups. We’re standing here today because we’re bringing light to an important issue. Puppy mill operations are guilty of often having significant animal welfare violations, often including but not limited to overbreeding, crowded and unsanitary conditions, lack of veterinary care and posing significant risks to the welfare of dogs living in these deplorable conditions.

We’ve all seen the images, Speaker. When an operation suspected of being a puppy mill is investigated, severely emaciated, crated dogs are often found living in their own filth conditions and in the presence of feces. It’s disgusting. There’s nothing about these conditions that indicates that these are safe places for a dog. That is something that every member of this House should agree on.

We are proposing new prohibitions that will help crack down on puppy mills to stop some of the worst practices out there, and that includes overbreeding, that includes keeping sick dogs away from other animals and that includes ensuring that dogs in custody receive the proper medical care.

As the Solicitor General just said in his speech, this government takes public safety seriously. I want to echo that statement here. But public safety doesn’t only just mean taking care of the people in this province, it also means taking care of the animals in this province, and frankly, that’s why it’s time that we make it harder for those in this province who want to abuse animals and who don’t provide animals with the proper care.

One of the proposed inclusions in the PUPS Act is a clarifying change related to enhanced debt collection tools. One of the roles animal welfare services takes on is the removal of animals when necessary. This is often seen when an animal is found in a distress situation. When an animal is removed from a distress situation by animal welfare services or at the recommendation of a veterinarian, the province ensures that they receive proper veterinary care. This results in a statement of account being issued to the owner of the animal to cover the costs.

This amendment will enhance the province’s ability to collect on those statements of account. If the province has to step in because you’re not doing your job and you’re not taking responsibility on behalf of an animal in your care, the province and the taxpayer shouldn’t be stuck with the bill. The bad owner should be stuck with the bill. This bill helps us collect on those debts.

But allow me to provide a little backstory, Speaker. As the Solicitor General pointed out, the Strengthening Safety and Modernizing Justice Act, which was passed by this House in June, included amendments to bolster the PAWS Act. One of those amendments enhanced the criteria of costs that are incurred by animal welfare services. By identifying these costs and by providing greater specificity on the types of costs incurred, these are costs that can now be recovered. You can’t collect what you can’t measure. This means animal owners of any animal will be responsible for paying the costs their actions have caused. These costs are itemized in a statement of account which is served to an animal owner or a custodian.

Under the current law, the Ministry of the Solicitor General can only enforce the collection of debt using standard collection tools such as callouts and follow-up letters. If passed, this amendment to the PAWS Act would authorize the use of enhanced debt collection tools under the Ministry of Revenue Act.

Those who abuse animals need to understand that there are consequences for their actions. These tools would not only support the collection of debts owed, but it will help enforce the government’s position that no animal deserves to be mistreated. This means animal owners of any animal will be responsible for paying the cost their actions have caused. For the bad actors out there, we are coming for you. Enough is enough.

While we’re on the topic of money, Speaker, let’s dive into this. I alluded earlier that financial gain is one of the main drivers of these horrific operations. It is also what keeps puppy mills in business. Unfortunately, these operators are turning enormous profits in the process, at the expense of the welfare of dogs.

The PUPS Act, if passed, will amend the PAWS Act and increase the minimum penalties for those accused of harming dogs and ensure that they receive fines that are worth their crimes. For those accused of operating a puppy mill contrary to subsection 23.2(1), they will receive a $10,000 fine if convicted—minimum. And for those found guilty of causing distress to a dog where the animal dies or a veterinarian determines that euthanasia is the most humane course of action, well, Madam Speaker, we’re implementing a minimum fine of $25,000 for that incident. Again, this is a prime example of our government’s efforts to hold people accountable. If you break these laws and you harm a dog, you will be held to account.

Dog owners and custodians of animals across the province are subject to the measures outlined in the PAWS Act, and that includes prohibitions against causing distress, as well as ensuring that the general standards of care are being met. But the way the legislation sits currently, Speaker, nowhere does it specifically call out the functions that we are seeing in puppy mill operations. For example, puppy mills are known to breed female dogs over and over again. While there have been efforts at the local level to contain and control this issue, we know that it’s time for us to step in.

This is an Ontario-wide issue. Operators of these facilities are operating in plain sight while strategically defrauding innocent members of the public. We will not accept that innocent individuals or families looking to add a furry friend family member have the potential to buy a sick dog that has lived a life subject to these conditions that may impact the quality of that animal’s life. The PUPS Act would, if passed, as mentioned, impose legislated minimum penalties and get to the root cause of harmful dog-breeding practices associated with puppy mills. We’re looking to close the valve that gives puppy mills the oxygen to survive.

Speaker, breeding, pregnancy, labour and delivery can all be very hard on a dog, and inhumane breeding practices can make that process even harder. Female dogs should not be breeding too early in their life and, once bred, they need time to physically and psychologically recover from the experience. The changes being proposed in the PUPS Act will prohibit harmful dog-breeding practices common in puppy mills, including restricting inbreeding, which is a practice that can be common in puppy mills, especially where breeding is largely unsupervised. This results in puppies that can suffer their entire life due to inherited health problems.

We are limiting the number of times a female dog can be bred within a certain time frame. As I mentioned, continuous breeding without appropriate breaks can result in too many litters and overcrowding, creating unsanitary conditions and health issues for puppies and for the breeding females.

We’re prohibiting the breeding of a female dog at too young of an age. Dogs need to be physiologically capable of breeding and raising puppies, and some pre-breeding health tests actually can only be completed after they turn a certain age. Giving dogs the time to mature prior to breeding allows a breeder to get to know the behavioural traits of the animal that will help make strategic and educated breeding decisions.

This act will also prohibit breeding a female dog too early on in its reproductive cycle. Many dogs’ first estrous, or heat cycle, is unlikely to allow successful breeding. In most circumstances, it’s industry best practice to wait until the second or even third heat cycle before breeding.

The proposed act will also prohibit separating a puppy from its mother at too young an age. As is the case with most mammals, in the early weeks of a puppy’s life they are fully dependent on their mother and will begin to learn social skills from their mother and from their littermates.

We will also be prohibiting allowing a dog with a contagious disease to interact with other dogs or animals or use the same objects, such as food or water containers. Isolation of dogs with suspected or confirmed contagious diseases is critical to prevent the spread of illnesses that can be fatal, such as parvovirus.

The proposed legislation also provides new regulation-making authorities to enable the ministry to set conditions and future regulations specific to the sale and transfer of dogs, as well as introduce record-keeping requirements. These future conditions could, for example, help stop the sale of sick puppies and the sale of puppies at too early of an age.

Now, on those specific items that I spoke about that this act would be introducing, I think most members of this House—certainly I would hope—would think these are all pretty basic things, that it’s not too much for us to ask for basic decency and living conditions for dogs in Ontario. We would hope that people would be conducting themselves ethically of their own accord, but we know there are bad actors. We know there are people who are financially benefiting off of cutting corners at the expense of the welfare of animals, and I believe, Madam Speaker, as does the Solicitor General, that it is the government’s duty and responsibility to step in to protect those dogs and those animals that aren’t able to protect themselves.

To assist with the enforceability of the new provisions, regulation-making authorities and offences, the PUPS Act proposes new definitions for the terms “dog” and “transfer.” If passed, “dog” would be defined as any dog, specifically “Canis lupus familiaris,” and would include an animal which is a cross between a dog and another member of the Canis genus group, including but not limited to a wolf or coyote. “Transfer,” for the purposes of future conditions related to the sale or transfer of a dog, would be defined as including offer for transfer and expose for transfer, such as trading or bartering a dog, but it would not include gifting.

These changes, to some, may seem like they aren’t enough, but this act will open the door to a new standard of care for dogs in Ontario on top of our already renowned animal welfare legislative standards. Until now, no Canadian province has had specific prohibitions on operating a puppy mill. As mentioned, Ontario is a leader in the animal welfare space, and we’re going to continue these efforts. It’s high time to set tougher rules to hold those who abuse dogs to account. If passed, the PUPS Act will make the necessary changes to the PAWS Act to help stop harmful dog-breeding practices associated with puppy mills, with proposed legislated minimum penalties that will start hitting the accused where it hurts: directly in their pocketbook.

Speaker, while I’m at it, I’d like to highlight a couple of other pieces of this legislation that will help keep dogs safe across the province. Under the PUPS Act, inbreeding and overbreeding, snatching puppies from their mothers too early in their development—breeders will need to clean up their act. Unsanitary kennels will be prohibited, and that means cracking down on kennels rotting with feces and other waste.

This bill will also allow the province to establish record-keeping regulations that will help animal welfare inspectors investigate potential puppy mills and to establish conditions that must be met to sell or transfer a dog in Ontario to help stop unethical sales practices and expose bad actors.

Speaker, I don’t need to paint pictures of the situation for any member of this House, but I’d like to switch gears for a moment and share a personal story about what really drives home why this bill is important.

Georgia, a sweet dog rescued from a puppy mill in Wallenstein, Ontario, was one of eight newborn puppies found in deplorable conditions. Their mother, trapped in a tiny cage surround by filth and fed cat food, was unable to provide them with the care they needed. Thanks to the efforts of a local organization, Georgia and her siblings were rescued and rehomed into loving environments. Today, Georgia is spending her days surrounded by a wonderful, loving family in my riding of Brampton North.

Speaker, when we investigate these puppy mills, what we find is nothing short of disgusting. We find dogs clinging to life, trapped in crates that are dirty and covered in their own excrement, which is why it’s crucial that we need to take action. The welfare of these animals is at stake. We need to put an end to these deplorable practices, starting with cracking down on overbreeding.

Speaker, I want to appeal to members of this House, and specifically the opposition. We passed Bill 102, which was a larger justice act—it was opposed by the NDP—where we made some of the amendments to the PAWS Act. I really hope members of the opposition will consider voting in favour of this bill. The animals in our province deserve it. They can’t protect themselves, and they need Parliament—they need parliamentarians to stand up for them and to protect them.

And I’ve got to tell you, Speaker, I will be a dog with a bone on this issue and hounding the opposition, and I would just request them to—please don’t let the opposition House leader muzzle you on this; speak up for your constituents. Vote in favour of this bill.

Speaker, I’ll end how I started, by recounting how this government is renowned for its work on animal welfare. Ontario has the strongest animal welfare legislation in the country, and under this Premier, Premier Doug Ford, our government is taking these concerns very seriously. We’ve heard from families across Ontario, from organizations across Ontario. Passing this bill is an opportunity for members of this House to show that we are listening, we hear you and we’re here with you, to stand with you every step of the way.

We’re going to continue to take strong action to build and maintain a modern animal welfare enforcement system to keep animals safe. That includes starting with practices that cause significant distress to the animals. That starts with the passage of the Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act, the PUPS Act.

I can only hope that all members of this House can see the light and stand up for animal welfare in this province. I hope that the members opposite and the independent members will take this issue seriously, and I hope that they support the passage of Bill 159 as it proceeds through second reading this week. And if they don’t, well then at least Ontarians can be confident they elected a Progressive Conservative government that will do whatever it takes to better protect animals from negligent care and abuse.

Further debate?

Since we’re talking about pets, I have to mention Louie, who is one of the hardest-working French bulldogs, owned by the Speaker herself. I saw a video last week of him working on—I think it was National Dog Day, so a shout-out to Louie.

Today I’m really excited speak on the PUPS Act, Bill 159, Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act, 2024, to amend the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, 2019.

I know there are so many people watching or who will listen or read this debate who have been working tirelessly for years and years and years to make these changes. So, for all the people, the volunteers at humane societies, to all the animal advocates out there, to Lynn Perrier—I know you’re watching, and I know you have a smile on your face—today is a good day for animal welfare in our province.

I used to always say that my mother was watching, but I have some pets at home, Bruce and Edward. They don’t watch TV during the day—and they have a houseguest named Baxster, so they’re all going to get in Hansard. Although they’re not watching TV, I always have to give a shout-out to my fur babies and our houseguest, Baxster, who is visiting for the next month.

Animal welfare: Where do we start? The PUPS Act addresses the important policy issue spotlighted in my very first private member’s bill here in this House, called Protecting Our Pets Act. My private member’s bill was put forward in this House in December 2018, and it received unanimous consent from this Legislature on second reading in March 2019. Due to my introduction of that bill, I received thousands of correspondence, including letters, emails, phone calls and had direct conversations from my own constituents and constituents not just in Ontario but all around the world, from animal advocates. It was clear that animal welfare was front of mind for the people in Ontario. It warms my heart to continue this debate today and continue on this important work of animal welfare.

I do want to thank our Premier, Doug Ford, who is an animal lover, and his family are animal lovers themselves, because it takes leadership to change these laws. Some of these laws haven’t been touched for over 100 years. So this government and the opposition as well because it was unanimous—we all in this House made a difference in animal welfare in our province. So I thank everybody in this House for their work.

The legislation we’re talking about today shows that as a team we are committed to a more compassionate world for our companion animals. I’d like to first quote one of the staff from the Canadian Kennel Club from when we introduced the PUPS Act back in December 2023. Jeff Cornett, who is the executive director of the Canadian Kennel Club, said that they support the “well-crafted legislation that is fair, non-discriminatory, and enforceable to target producers of unhealthy puppies, without unduly burdening responsible breeders. We look forward to working with the government to address the puppy mill issue and ensure that new legislation will consider the interests of responsible breeders who prioritize the health and well-being of dogs.”

That being said, we have to give a shout-out to breeders. There are good breeders out there. They are the ones who care for their pets, make sure they sell their pets to appropriate people. They do interviews. Anybody out there who is looking to buy a pet, if you go online, if someone is not interviewing you and asking questions of what kind of household you have, maybe that’s not the puppy or the pet you should be purchasing, because when you buy these pets, you have to make them their forever home. You certainly don’t want to take that forever-home pet to your home and have it be sick. So please do your homework before you go out and purchase your pets.

If passed, this bill will do exactly what the kennel club had suggested. It’s going to promote fair and ethical competition that values the welfare of animals over profit. In 2019, our government passed the PAWS Act, which I also had the opportunity to speak on.

Going back to the day I bought Bruce, I actually bought Bruce, which is my dog, from a volunteer—he was a rescue. He wasn’t a puppy mill dog, but he was a rescue dog. I was interviewed, and I actually knew the woman who was selling me the dog. It wasn’t really a sale, it was more to pay for some of his vet bills to get him to that point. She interviewed me. She interviewed my family. She interviewed my friends. I had to give a couple of references to make sure that we were going to make sure that that dog was looked after, and I’m okay with that.

Bruce has a good life. He has his issues, and he eats everything in sight, but we still love him. They knew he was going to a good home. Now, maybe I come home a little late, as we all do, especially now that the Gardiner is under construction. It takes that extra half an hour to get home, so it’s an hour-and-a-half drive. Thank you, city of Toronto. But when we are purchasing our animals, as I said, we have to make sure that we go through the proper process, because if we don’t, you’ve got to watch for that breeder. I think this legislation is going to make that difference.

There are over 7.9 million dogs in Canada, and that number is growing. I’m sure none of us walk down the street in our communities and we don’t see another pet, another dog on a leash. That number is growing, especially through COVID. During COVID, we saw a lot of people purchase animals. The sad thing with COVID was people purchased animals, and then they went back to work, and they realized, “Hmm, maybe I don’t have the time for an animal.” That was sad. You see a lot of these COVID animals back in humane societies. Before you purchase an animal, maybe you want to stop by your local humane society to see who they have that can add joy to your family.

We are very lucky in Canada to have so many people who serve in the best interests of our animals, including our veterinarians. I have an amazing veterinarian. I probably go there far too often, including on Christmas Eve when my dog decided to open all the presents, including all the chocolate, and have a little feast. They tend to do that in the evenings on Christmas Eve, so I was at the emergency vet all Christmas Eve with a nice bill to end the year with. So thank you to our veterinarians, especially our emergency vets, our humane societies, our dog walkers, our pet sitters and just those who love our animals and go out to rescue those animals who are in need or trying to find their forever homes.

I know in my riding of Etobicoke–Lakeshore, we have the Etobicoke Humane Society. I want to give them a shout-out and thank them and their volunteers for the tremendous work they do. I know that they have a lot of cats. I visited them about three weeks ago to say hello and just to see how they were doing, and there were a lot of cats. So if you’re looking for a cat, you can check the humane society, but make sure if you want an animal, it is their forever home, and please do not declaw those cats.

I’m trying to get all my speeches out in one speech, all my animal advocacy work that I want to see happen.

Our volunteers, they do tremendous work in helping animals transition from the streets and out of bad situations. They rehabilitate and they work to find suitable forever homes for our furry friends. These organizations usually operate entirely on donations and their fundraising efforts, and I would like to encourage anyone in this House to find more information on their website to see how they can help their causes. We all have humane societies in our community, and they do amazing work.

As much as there are good causes and organizations in Ontario helping animals, there’s also the reality that there are still people and systems out there that take advantage of and exploit animals, and that’s really what we’re talking about today: To fight that exploitation and put an end to unjust practices that are forced upon our vulnerable pets.

Puppy mills: What is a puppy mill? We’ve all heard about them. They’re commercial breeding facilities that mass-produce dogs for the sole purpose of profiteering. They breed puppies as fast as they can without the proper care, and often the animals are neglected.

Puppies bred in puppy mills are sold through pet stores—not in Toronto, and I want to thank former mayor Rob Ford. He was the one who banned selling puppies in pet stores here in Toronto. That was in 2011. That was our former mayor Rob Ford who did that, so thank you. They’re also sold through classified ads. Now that we’re in the age of technology, you see them online being sold through Kijiji or other forms of sales, and you’ve got to be careful with that, as I mentioned.

I’m going to tell you a little story about my sister’s dog—she has now passed; her name was Billie. She was a bulldog. When Mary adopted Billie, she was a puppy mill dog, so she was rescued from a puppy mill through the bulldog society—I’m not sure the name, but their organization. When she received Billie, she couldn’t use her back two legs because she had never walked, she was in a cage her whole life. She was three, and I don’t know how many—after they turn a certain age, they can’t breed anymore. She couldn’t move. We grew up with pets, we always had pets, and Billie was a great dog, but it was so sad to see her. Eventually, over time, she was able to move around the house and outside, but it took time and it took love and it took care. We can help some of these animals that are in these dire situations have a good life. We shout out to all those people who save these animals and give them a good life after.

The sad part of buying some of these animals online from puppy mills is that you buy them without knowing the condition of where their new family friend—how they were born into the world. Sometimes you’re often told that it was positive conditions or the dog was certainly looked after, they may say they had shots, and then their dog becomes sick because these dogs were confined to overcrowded cages with minimal shelter from extreme weather, and they have no choice but to sleep in their own waste—you see some of these horrible pictures of these matted dogs with their waste around their fur. Some of these animals suffer from malnutrition and starvation due to inadequate and unsanitary food or water. The sick or dying animals receive no veterinary care and the adults are continuously bred until they can no longer produce, and as I said, they are discarded. That’s what they are. They are discarded, as you would discard your leftover sandwich.

That is why we, as a government, must continue—and I have to shout out to the member for Dufferin–Caledon, who was the former Solicitor General, who brought in the PAWS Act, and this Solicitor General who continued on her track of making sure that animal welfare is important and is at the forefront of some things that we do. Thank you to Solicitor General Kerzner for your work and for allowing me to take on some of the files. It was certainly an honour to work with you, my friend.

When we talk about puppy mills, puppies are often taken away from their mothers too early, and they suffer from serious behavioural problems and continue that into their adult life. Mill sites can lead to numerous medical issues for dogs, including diseases and also birth defects, and then also there’s inbreeding.

I’m just looking at my time here. Somebody had suggested in a Star article that there’s over 2,000 puppy mills across Canada, and a majority of those mills are in Ontario and Quebec. Madam Speaker, I know you believe this: That is 2,000 too many. It was suggested in an article that since 2001, the amount of puppy mills has increased because of the use of the Internet in the advertising of sales. It’s money. It’s a way people make a living. And we are going to stop that.

These mills are increasing profits at the expense of the welfare of these animals. We don’t mind people making a profit if they care for these animals, but if you’re not, we don’t want you to be in this business, and the Solicitor General is going to put you out of business.

If the PUPS Act is passed, we will ensure that we have the resources to set standards for breeding dogs in our province to stop these inhumane practices. While the PAWS Act scrapped and revised 100-year-old legislation, the PUPS Act offers to continue that imperative work we started six years ago.

The PAWS Act has already been successful as it has given our government the tools to finally fight against the mistreatment of animals. It came into force on January 1, 2020, enabling Canada’s very first provincial animal welfare enforcement system. The PAWS Act aims to strengthen animal welfare and enable effective and efficient enforcement that is responsive and accountable to the public.

We hear a lot of people asking for some stats about what the PAWS Act has done, and I want to share those stats with you today. Since the PAWS Act came into effect in January 2020, more than 7,600 orders have been made, over 600 charges have been laid and over 5,200 animals have been removed from unsafe conditions. I think that’s excellent work. I actually had the opportunity to meet some of our amazing inspectors when I was touring Aylmer, and I just want to thank those animal inspectors for the work they do. They do it in a compassionate manner. We should shout out to them.

Madam Speaker, thank you for allowing me to have the opportunity to speak on this. Let’s protect our pets and pass this bill unanimously.

It’s now time for questions and responses.

Response?

Further questions?

My question is to the Solicitor General. You and I have had many conversations about your dog, Hal, and my dog, Nellie, and how this is very important to us. I also want to thank you for how you kept in touch with me during the incident that happened in Hamilton with the dog, Merlin, that was dragged.

I want you to know that we want this to be successful, 100%. We support your concern, our concern, for animal welfare. But I do have to say, I really want to know how you are going to step up enforcement. The PAWS Act has a budget of about $21 million, compared to what the OSPCA had, which was about $6 million. During the same period of time, the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals laid about 2,000 charges. We just heard here from the member from Etobicoke–Lakeshore that PAWS laid about 650 charges. So the charges are going down.

My dog is a rescue dog. I got her from a farm which was breeding puppies. She was really a puppy mill accident; she wasn’t a purebred, and so they were going to discard her. My question to you is, how can you step up enforcement, and how do you know who the bad actors are? And the tough language—

This question is for the member for Etobicoke–Lakeshore. We heard in the government leadoff that we must act against unethical puppy mills. Could the member please elaborate on what restrictions must be implemented to achieve this?

Thank you very much for that question.

I would take this opportunity to start with this: If you ever see an animal in distress, we have a hotline, and you can call 1-833-9-ANIMAL. That’s 1-833-9-ANIMAL. That is already in place, and there are people who will pick up that phone.

We want to make sure that animals are not overbred before the age of one, so this bill will say you have to wait until after one year—a one-year-old animal should not be bred until after that fact. We also want to make sure that they have strict standards of water, being fed, proper shelter—just the basic needs of a pet.

Through the PAWS Act, we have put together some standards of care for animals. We want to make sure that ethical breeders are following those standards. Unethical breeders could be charged, and if they are charged, it’s a minimum penalty of $10,000 for operating a puppy mill and $25,000 if the commission of an offence results in the death of a dog.

We want to make sure that these dogs are healthy and that they continue to be healthy. We want to make sure that they are not in distress. We want to make sure these animals are living a life they should. We all have that—

Thank you to my colleague for that question.

It’s important that we start with the premise that we can’t fix what we don’t measure. Some of the specific items that were put into this bill that are to identify puppy mills are things like—I’ll give you an example: breeding a female dog before the age of 12 months or the age of one year. What we’ve heard from animal welfare inspectors is that when they go into some of these puppy mills, especially some of the more disorganized ones—frankly, a lot of the ones that are bad actors, we think, might be intentionally not keeping records, which includes birth certificates to showcase the age of the animal. So the inspector goes in and they suspect a dog is under a year, and there’s no birth certificate for them to actually identify to say this is a dog that is under a year old.

What we’ve done now, rather than having that onus and that work on the inspector—we’re putting the onus on the breeder, on the owner-operator. If they’re going to be making money off of selling dogs, they have a responsibility to keep proper records and properly maintain those records to ensure they’re doing it in a humane manner. I think it makes sense. I hope all members support it.

My colleagues have mentioned the objectives of the PUPS Act: to regulate record-keeping, sales and transfers of dogs. Could the member explain the reason and implication of such regulation?

To the Solicitor General: Could you tell us the genesis of this bill? Was there a particular event or a particular organization that inspired you to bring this forward?

I very much appreciate the question and I appreciate the member’s commitment, also, for animal welfare. The whole purpose of raising the conversation today is addressing the fact that overbreeding by bad actors, by puppy mills, is a serious issue.

Ontarians have said that the care of animals—animal welfare—is important. So when the Deputy Premier, the member from Dufferin–Caledon, brought forward the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, that was our commitment to have one of the strongest legislations ever anywhere, and today with the PUPS Act, we’re taking it to another step. This is where we’re planting our flag.

The genesis of animal welfare is something that this government said is a priority, and that’s why the Deputy Premier, when she was Solicitor General, brought in the act.

I want to use this moment to also stress that the proposed amendments will hold irresponsible dog breeders accountable and deter bad actors from operating puppy mills, through strong penalties. I think this is very important.

I want to recognize Huron University College, which is located in London. They are launching a new degree program this September in animal ethics and sustainability leadership. It’s the first program of its kind in the world, and it’s thanks to the vision and passion of Dr. Kendra Coulter, who is a globally recognized expert in animal welfare advocacy.

One of the concerns that Dr. Coulter has raised in Ontario is the need for more PAWS Act inspectors, so that cases can be thoroughly and quickly investigated. She has also called for more training and protective measures for inspectors.

So, Speaker, my question to the minister: Right now, we have about 100 inspectors under the PAWS Act. How does the minister expect the new PUPS Act to be properly and effectively enforced if we don’t have enough inspectors to proactively inspect and do the enforcement necessary?

One very quick question?

Second reading debate deemed adjourned.

Again, I really want to hear very specifically how you’re going to enforce this. You’ve identified bad actors, but I really want to hear from you. How are you going to enforce this? You have enabling legislation; that is wonderful, but it’s the enforcement. And I didn’t hear a very adequate answer from you.

Thanks to the colleague for the question and that’s good to know about Huron University, as well. This bill will be going to committee, so we would love to have them come to committee and testify that as well.

What this act is here to do is to codify and clarify what a puppy mill is and minimum fines to hold those bad actors to account. We’ve heard, from animal welfare inspectors, concerns about lack of record-keeping. We’ve heard about lack of definition when they’re doing their jobs and laying these charges.

We are clearly laying out: If you are breeding a female dog before a year old, you will face a $10,000 fine. If you’re caught having an animal in bad conditions, where they don’t have proper sanitary, they don’t have the proper diet, you will face a fine—$10,000. If your neglect of an animal causes the death of an animal, you will face a fine of $25,000.

I’m sure the folks from my colleague’s riding would agree that this is a very good thing, and we’re pleased to have the support of the OSPCA and Canadian Kennel Club as well.

Mr. Speaker, all of us in the Legislature represent communities and the lifeblood of those communities are volunteers.

I’m honoured to acknowledge the 60th anniversary of Richmond Lions Club in the village of Richmond in the riding of Carleton.

Since 1964, this volunteer-driven organization has been the heart and soul of the community. They raise funds that might go to paying for equipment at the local hospital or helping a struggling family in need. They assist seniors and make donations to programs like Meals on Wheels. They even quietly help underprivileged youth register for minor hockey or youth soccer. They organize road barriers for community events like parades and road races. They offer a team of volunteers to other groups and organizations who need help to run their events and fundraisers.

In some communities, service clubs are fading away. People have other priorities than giving back to their community. But the Richmond Lions Club is a strong and growing community organization.

The importance of giving back to the community is what drives their members. Love of their community and giving back is what draws special people to become members in this special organization.

Congratulations to the Richmond Lions Club for making our community—a community I am so proud to represent in the Legislature—a better place to live for 60 years.

Service clubs deserve our recognition, not just in Carleton but in every riding in Ontario.

This year, the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games, les Jeux d’hiver d’Olympiques spéciaux Canada ont eu lieu à Calgary. These 2024 Winter Games were extra special because seven of the national athletes were from Sudbury and they brought home seven medals. Our Sudbury athletes participated in five-pin bowling and the snowshoeing competitions, and during the games, they demonstrated tenacity, courage and love for the sport. One of our athletes, Mathieu, is currently waiting to see if he will be advancing to the worlds in Italy in 2025.

It wasn’t just their skills that made an impression; Air Canada was so impressed, they asked for a group photo outside their plane with all the athletes in their plaid Team Ontario uniforms.

It was my absolute pleasure to meet with them and their coaches at my local office last week. I love hearing about all their great experiences, and I’d like to take this time to congratulate Eric and Mathieu and Lori and Amanda, Gabriel and Taylor for their achievements.

You’ve all made Sudbury incredibly proud. Félicitations pour toutes vos réussites.