Manitoba pet expo brings pet lovers of all kinds under one roof

Pet lovers of all kinds were in St. Norbert on Sunday celebrating all things pets at this years Manitoba Pet Expo. With 80 booths this year, there are plenty of local businesses on had with offerings such as one-of-a-kind apparel, training expertise, specialty food products, grooming, and more.

Organizer of the Manitoba Pet Expo Jessica Klym says many shelters present on Sunday are struggling to take care of the pets in their care.

“During the pandemic, there wasn’t a lot of socialization and training that people could take their pets to,” explained Klym. “I’d say some rescues are seeing ‘covid’ puppies and ‘covid’ dogs come through.”

During the pandemic many people got pets,  but now that the pandemic is over, many shelters are seeing much higher numbers in terms of rescues.

Jacquie Coleman is a volunteer with the Manitoba Great Pyrenees rescue, she says the extreme levels of rescues is because of owners who didn’t know how to properly care for their pets.

“A lot of those animals couldn’t get spayed or neutered, which contributed to the population,” Coleman said. “Se we do still see a large number of these animals that come in that do need to be taken care of.”

Events like the Manitoba Pet Expo are important for raising awareness of the challenges facing animal rescues of all types across the province. Without the generous support from the public, Corinne Nykorak who helps run Blackbird Ranch Equine Rescue and Rehab says rescues would be in real trouble.

“When we do adopt out horses, we do get funds in,” Nykorak explained. “But we never get reimbursed for the amount the animal is costing. Because when we bring in horses, we need to get them vet checked.”

This years event, was able to expand into a second building and was hosted by the Boston Terrier and Pug Rescue of Southern Manitoba.

Proceeds raised by organizations during the event go towards supporting the medical treatment for animals in their care.