Report Animal Cruelty

If you have reason to suspect animal abuse or neglect, please contact Calgary Humane Society at (403) 205-4455. If you are witnessing active physical abuse or it is after CHS operational hours and the animal is at risk of death or grievous injury call Calgary Police Service at 911.

When to report animal abuse

 

If you have reasonable grounds to suspect animal abuse or neglect, please contact Calgary Humane Society. We are the only organization in Calgary mandated to enforce the Animal Protection Act of Alberta.

In order to investigate your concern, there must be reasonable grounds to believe that an offence under the Animal Protection Act of Alberta has been committed. The offence is to cause or allow an animal to be in distress.

The definition of distress includes:

Lack of Care
Adequate food, water, shelter, veterinary care, space, ventilation and reasonable protection from injurious heat or cold

Neglect 
Injured, sick, in pain or suffering

Abuse
Abused or subjected to undue hardship, privation, or neglect

We will also investigate abandonment of animals:

  1. Animal left with inadequate food, water or shelter for more than 24 hours;
  2. Animal is found in a residence in which tenancy has been terminated;
  3. Animal is left for 5 days or more after the expected retrieval time from a registered veterinarian or from a person who for money consideration or its equivalent stables, boards or cares for the animal;

Please note that, as a policy respecting confidentiality, we do not release details of an investigation. You may call our dispatch centre at 403-205-4455 for an update, however, the only information available will be the status of the case. Our officers will never leave an animal in distress. If a file has been concluded, the reported issue has been resolved. If a file remains open, the investigation and/or the intervention is ongoing.

How to Report Animal Abuse or Neglect in Calgary

If you’d like to report animal abuse or neglect in Calgary, call (403) 205-4455 to speak with a dispatcher or submit your report using this form.

Please provide as much information as possible—this helps us conduct a thorough investigation. Once your report is submitted, a Peace Officer may be in touch with you to clarify details.

Thank you for making your report. Without concerned community members like you, we would not be able to fulfill our mandate to help as many animals as we can.

Name(Required)
Willing to testify if prosecuted? *(Required)
First name of accused
Max. file size: 50 MB.

Frequently Asked Questions

You can report suspected abuse of an animal to Calgary Humane Society by completing the form above or by calling the Calgary Humane Society dispatch line at (403) 205-4455.

If you are witnessing active physical abuse or it is after CHS operational hours and the animal is at risk of death or grievous injury call Calgary Police Service at 911.

Yes, you can report animal abuse anonymously. However, without your information we may be limited in action we can take to intervene via search warrant or prosecute without witness testimony. Your identity will not be shared with the accused unless a search warrant is required or a charge is laid, in which case your identity must be shared as part of the court disclosure rules.

Please note that, as a policy respecting confidentiality, we do not release details of an investigation. You may call our dispatch centre at (403) 205-4455 for an update; however, the only information available will be the status of the case. Our officers will never leave an animal in distress. If a file has been concluded, the reported issue has been resolved. If a file remains open, the investigation and/or the intervention is ongoing.

Yes, you can visit our Pet Safety page to download printable and sharable resources about pet safety.

Visit Pet Safety 

 

If you have reason to suspect animal abuse or neglect, please contact Calgary Humane Society at (403) 205-4455.