New PAWS Act boosts accountability for animal care

By Crispin Colvin, OFA Director

The Provincial Animal Welfare Services (PAWS) Act came into effect January 1, 2020. This new statute replaces the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, and brings with it an updated, more uniform approach to delivering animal welfare enforcement in Ontario.

The PAWS Act implements a provincially funded animal welfare enforcement model, designed to protect animals from abuse and neglect, and creates uniformity across the province. The legislation introduces a new enforcement system for Ontario, headed by the Chief Animal Welfare Inspector, and includes trained animal welfare inspectors employed by the province. As a publicly funded animal welfare enforcement model, this revamped system provides for increased accountability, transparency, and oversight by the government.