B.C. SPCA gave owner’s lost dog away — and she can’t get it back
Tattoo, tag disputed by agency, tribunal
It’s every pet owner’s greatest fear: their animal runs off and can’t be found.
But in the case of Dale Malkinson, that nightmare got even worse. In April 2022, her dog, Zeva, went missing. It turns out she was dropped off at the B.C. SPCA, renamed and adopted by another family. By the time Malkinson discovered where Zeva was, it was too late to claim her.
Now, Malkinson can’t get her back, and the SPCA won’t inform the new family that their Yorkie’s old owner is desperately trying to reunite with her.
“I went to the SPCA and I said I have $1,744 to my name. That’s all the money I had ... I said they’re welcome to it. It’s enough to buy them their own Yorkie where they can make their own memories. I just want my dog back,” Malkinson said in an interview.
Malkinson had been out feeding her lambs, and when she turned around, Zeva was gone.
“I thought maybe she’d gone to play with the cats and I called and called and I hunted and hunted, but she was nowhere to be found,” Malkinson told National Post through tears. “I walked up and down the ditches ... I spent (until) after midnight hunting for her everywhere I could think, and calling and hunting.”
“It was like she disappeared off the face of the Earth.”
She had two theories: the first, that a predator had snatched the tiny dog. The other, that someone had pulled into the driveway, snatched her and driven away.
But, Zeva had been found along the side of the highway, and turned over to the B.C. SPCA in the South Peace region in northeastern British Columbia, according to a court decision on Zeva’s ownership.
“It honestly never entered my mind to think that she could possibly end up at the SPCA because she’s tattooed and was wearing a rabies tag, either of which should have got her home to me or the vet’s if somebody had taken her there. But I seriously thought a predator got her,” Malkinson said.
The SPCA says when it received Zeva, it sought to find her owner, but Zeva’s ID tattoo was faded, leading the animal rescue agency to misread a letter on it, and it couldn’t track Malkinson down. The rabies tags led them to a third person, with whom the SPCA left two voice mails, which weren’t returned. (Malkinson disputes this, saying she was told by the SPCA that Zeva had no tattoo, collar or rabies tag and that the agency later changed its story to say that it was unable to reach her.)
The SPCA also posted Zeva on its social media as a lost dog, but Malkinson didn’t see those postings, the court documents said.
Zeva was then transferred to Abbotsford for veterinary work on her teeth. She was renamed Delilah and put up for adoption.
The law around animal ownership is relatively clear — but jarring.
For many pet owners, they aren’t “owners” at all. They’re guardians or pet parents. “Pawrents,” in the social media parlance. The reality, is different. They’re property.
“We can have death row for dogs coast to coast, because animals are property,” said Victoria Shroff, a Vancouver-based animal lawyer.
In B.C., the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act gives the SPCA the power to determine whether or not an animal has an owner.
It takes only four days, legally speaking, for a stray animal to become the property of the SPCA, giving them the power to “destroy, sell or otherwise dispose of the animal” after that time period. Once that’s done, the prior owner has no legal rights.
“It always comes to (people) as a shock to know that their animals could be treated like a toaster,” said Shroff.
The law is slowly catching up with the culture around pet ownership. In British Columbia, amendments to the Family Law Act treat pets more like family members in the event of a divorce, than like a piece of property.
Thirty years ago, people thought of animals as disposable and replaceable, Shroff said.
“Oh, you lost your cat yesterday? Well, today’s a new day. Go down to the SPCA and adopt another one, what’s the big deal? Literally (that) was the prevailing point of view,” Shroff said.
In a near miss, back in 2022, Malkinson found the adoption listing in Abbotsford, and reached out to the SPCA to adopt Delilah, thinking that Zeva had been killed, noting that she “looks very much like my Zeva.” The B.C. SPCA responded that it was only considering local adoptions because the dog needed ongoing dental appointments in Abbotsford.
On May 27, 2022, a family adopted Zeva. On that same day, Malkinson had gone to the South Peace SPCA and said she thought Zeva was the dog named Delilah, and sent veterinary records proving she owned Zeva. The court documents say it was after close of business; Malkinson contends she arrived at the SPCA office in Dawson Creek minutes before closing, to find the doors locked.
But, it was too late — the other family had already adopted Zeva.
“I have been fighting since day 1 to try to get my dog back. Nobody seems to care. I couldn’t hurt any more if I’d have gave birth to her and she was my child. I am not married. I don’t have children,” said Malkinson. “She is my world ... they don’t take that stuff into consideration.”
So far, she has been unable to contact the new family. And the SPCA won’t let the family know the old owner is desperate to get Zeva back.
“For the privacy and confidentiality of all involved parties,
it would not be appropriate for us to inform the new owner of this information,” said Kaila Butler, the senior manager of communications for the B.C. SPCA, in an email. “The Civil Resolution Tribunal has confirmed that the B.C. SPCA acted in good faith and followed all legal obligations throughout our care of Zeva.”
After Zeva was adopted, Malkinson went to the civil resolution tribunal, an online avenue to settle civil disputes without going to court or hiring a lawyer, hoping to get Zeva back.
Peter Mennie, the tribunal adjudicator, sided with the SPCA.
“I accept that the B.C. SPCA made its best efforts to locate Ms. Malkinson but was not able to do so. Zeva’s identification tattoo was faded and the contact information on her rabies tag was not current. I find that the B.C. SPCA was entitled to give Zeva to a new owner after holding her for more than 4 days,” the court decision says. “I find that Ms. Malkinson no longer has any right to claim Zeva.”
At the tribunal, Malkinson argued that the SPCA had stolen Zeva, and did not make a good-faith effort to reach out to the new family to inquire about getting the dog back. Mennie disagreed, agreeing with the SPCA that Malkinson should have informed them immediately that her dog was missing.
“I appreciate that Ms. Malkinson had a close connection with Zeva and that the struggles in her life were more bearable through Zeva’s companionship,” Mennie wrote. “Ms. Malkinson’s rights to Zeva ended when a new owner adopted Zeva.”
Every day since, Malkinson says, she has wept for Zeva.
“I would love to talk to the people that have her and beg for them to give her back. I would happily sell whatever I have to get them enough money to buy their own dog. I don’t want another dog. I want my dog.”
I DON’T WANT ANOTHER DOG. I WANT MY DOG.