Adopting dogs “from the North”: How do I find my way around?
- stephanie98033
- May 10
- 2 min read
Adopting dogs from the “North”: How do you find your way around?
It can be difficult for the uninitiated not to know and identify the questions to ask when adopting dogs from First Nations and Inuit communities. Yet obtaining and disseminating the right information is essential, for both public health and animal welfare reasons.
Many shelters, SPAs and SPCAs are helping to save the lives of dogs from these territories, which is a very positive thing. All these voiceless animals deserve a chance. However, we feel it's important to put certain notions into perspective to encourage responsible and enlightened adoption.
Rabies in endemic regions
Not all communities and villages are endemic for Arctic fox rabies. To claim that three quarters of dogs coming from communities have rabies is false. But so is claiming that there is no risk. For all our rescues from high-risk regions, our adopters are informed, sign an adoption contract where this is recalled and receive a notice drawn up by MAPAQ on the adoption of dogs from Nord-du-Québec. We do not limit ourselves to Nord-du-Québec, but to all high-risk regions: Terres-Cries-de-la-Baie-James, Nunavik, part of Côte-Nord and Nord-du-Québec.
Dogs from "the North
It's important to note that not all communities are geographically located in Northern Quebec. Opitciwan, for example, is an Atikamekw community in the Mauricie region. They are not, therefore, survivors from the North.
The right questions to ask
1- Always ask the adoption organization where the animal comes from. If it comes from an Inuit community/village, refer to the interactive map available here to find out the risk: Click here to see the map.
2- If the dog comes from a high-risk health region, ask about quarantine and vaccination protocols, and make sure the organization is fully aware of the issues.
Responsible adoption isn't just about saving a life; it's also about the interactions that exist between animals and humans from a “global health” point of view.
