Association for the Reform of the Toronto Humane Society

To OPGT (Ontario Public Guardian and Trustee)

History Repeats Itself

A chronicle of Tim Trow's re–election as President — 2001 to date
(with specific reference to other long–time Board members)

“Every institution contains potential for its own destruction. Only constant
vigilance and unfailing effort can prevent the potential from becoming the fact.”

Anderson J., in the ruling on “Re Public Trustee and Toronto Humane Society et al.”,
Ontario High Court of Justice, June 5 1987, [1987] O.J. No. 534

With the following chronology, we intend to demonstrate how history is yet again repeating itself today. We plea for assistance so that this history of dysfunction ceases once and for all and is never allowed to be repeated.

The following information was taken entirely from the public domain.

The heading “Date” refers to the date of the event (approximate or exact).

Sources can be provided if requested

Date	Event
@Sep/01	Joan Milne is THS V.P. (Milne became Director in 1988). Bob Hambley is a THS Director.
Sep4/01	Member Tim Trow and Elizabeth (Betty) John (THS Director) sue THS Board to strike a recently implemented bylaw “By–law 2”. Pell Capone acts as Counsel for Trow and John in their application. Trow & John cite that, prior to voting upon the By–law at the Dec8/00 AGM, the members were not advised that By–law 2 would cause them to lose their voting privileges.
Sep10/01	Trow's suit against THS is successful. By–law 2 is struck in it's entirety. Court orders THS cover Trow's and John's costs. Quoted in documentation: “a number of directors including...Robert Hambley... have sworn that their approval of the by–law was given without any knowledge that this new by–law would remove from present THS members the right to vote... ”
Sep18/01	Joan Milne, in her capacity as VP, sends out a package of information to members which calls for a THS AGM in approx 2 weeks (Oct4/01) removal of 7 Board members The package includes a letter from member Tim Trow asking for members to vote in line with he and Milne to remove said 7 Board members discussing the recent attempt by the present Board to implement By–law2 without advising members they'd lose their vote in the process his recent success returning the vote to members This package is only sent out to certain members, is not sent to some staff and is not sent out to the 7 Board members they are trying to have removed
Oct1/01	Toronto Humane Society & Bruce Reid (Director) sue Joan Milne, THS V.P., for improper notice of AGM
Oct2/01	THS & Reid lawsuit is successful Court finds: insufficient notice was provided for the AGM nature of Trow's letter to the members, included in Milne's package, was partisan by nature and provided limited information re the Board members they were requesting be removed is “troubling” that not all members received the same information package Court states its findings deprived the members of “coming to an informed decision”. Court orders new THS AGM date of Nov12/01.
Circa Nov3/01	A group, led by Tim Trow, mails proxy material to THS members. Trow also canvasses members via phone to support the movement.
Nov12/01	THS AGM Tim Trow elected in as President by majority of member votes. Results of Board elections: Trow is newly elected President (reprising his role held from 1982–84) Bud Walters is newly elected as Director (was on THS Board '80–86) Alan Johnson is newly elected as Director (was on THS Board '79–86) Bob Hambley continues role as Director and is newly elected as Secretary Treasurer (has been on THS Board since 1979) Joan Milne continues role as VP (started on THS Board in 1988) To date, 2008: Trow, Walters, Johnson, Hambley and Milne hold the same positions.
WITHIN TWO YEARS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF NEW BOARD OF DIRECTORS WITH TIM TROW AS PRESIDENT:
2003	Veterinarian Peter Copeland resigns Newspaper article quotes him as saying he resigned in part due to overcrowding: "As a vet, I didn't have input, to say, "I think we've reached our limit, I don't think we should take any more in." There were times I was dissatisfied with the care as a result,"
Early 2005	Veterinarian Carolyn Murray, 14yrs in role at THS, writes letter to the THS Board of Directors outlining, among other things, the following concerns: the room designated for cats with respiratory infections was full, and sick cats were placed in the back hallway. Cages were filthy with diarrhea, food material and nasal spray Animals were being looked after improperly due to overcrowding and the society's known low euthanasia policy
Jul05	Teamsters Union offer “Interest Arbitration” to THS. Proposal is intended to stop the labour disruption and restore full professional care to the animals. They allege Toronto Humane Society, under Tim Trow's leadership, requested the deadline and forced the workers into a labour dispute by forcing changes in the workplace Allegations by union members include: Locks were put on washroom doors so that workers were not able to use them Management disciplined a worker for alleged sexual harassment then promoted the individual to a supervisory position (to supervise women) Donated dollars were being spent defending allegations of sexual harassment
Jul05	Veterinarian Sue Carstairs resigns Her decision to resign is “fuelled by seeing baby birds, which should be fed every 15 to 30 minutes, being kept in shoeboxes and fed only three times a day... When I couldn't do anything to make it better, I decided not to work there anymore”. As per Carstairs, by the time of her resignation, management had "basically closed" the wildlife centre. Trained staff had either retired or were reassigned, and weren't replaced. Some animals were admitted without seeing a vet. Veterinary Technician Sandra Prins quoted in article saying the technicians were asked to take on the wildlife work. "We had no training with respect to wildlife. I touched a baby raccoon maybe once in my life." She called the unit "an absolute mess. Sometimes there wouldn't be anyone to clean or feed there."
Aug05	Full time veterinarian Esther Attard, 11yrs in role with THS, euthanizes 3 squirrels which she felt "weren't thriving and should be put down for humane reasons". Soon after she receives a letter of suspension from the then–shelter manager. Letter states the squirrels "seemed to be quite healthy," and that wildlife euthanasia required "permission from the shelter manager or the shelter supervisor." Attard is quoted in this Toronto Star article as saying "I was devastated that they would think I would euthanize just because. I don't make those decisions lightly. I agonize. This was management interfering with the veterinary procedures."
Oct05	Above mentioned veterinarian Esther Attard resigns. Newspaper article discusses the "last straw" which caused her to resign. Attard found a feral emaciated cat, "Speedy", dead in it's cage, with yellow discharge oozing from it's mouth and nose. The cat had been at the shelter for about a month. "Speedy" caught an upper respiratory system illness at the shelter and stopped eating. At the time Attard states the shelter was overcrowded, infection was rampant and spreading. Attard alleges the society's known very low euthanasia rate contributed to the overcrowding, and the prolonged suffering of cats like "Speedy"
Nov05	Mike Draper, Chief Inspector of OSPCA, advises Tim Trow that a private investigator has been hired to investigate allegations of Mismanagement Animal neglect Overcrowding and disease Non–domestic animals not being cared for properly Managers interfering with professional decisions on euthanasia and adoptability [in contravention of College of Veterinarians of Ontario "CVO" Guidelines] Statements were taken from volunteers (past and present), staff (past and present), veterinarians (past and present), and union members (past and present). Included among statements were those taken from Peter Copeland, veterinarian who resigned in 2003 due, in part, to concerns of welfare of the animals. Accusations that Draper found credible included cats and dogs not being properly fed or watered, veterinarians not properly looking after cats, adoptions going to people "financially unable to care for them," and management prolonging suffering by refusing to euthanize animals. Criminal Charges were threatened.
Dec05	Above mentioned veterinarian Carolyn Murray resigns after 14yrs in her role. Newspaper article quotes her as saying: "There is more than just numbers, ...You have to look at the quality of the care, what was actually happening to those animals." "There were a lot [of animals] dying of dehydration, not eating well, stressed, picking up diseases because they weren't receiving the optimal preventative care,"
Feb18/06	Teamsters Union goes on strike The union members say a poor work environment is behind their decision to strike. They claim they wanted a one–year deal that would've given them time to address their issues. Brian Lawrence, vice president of Teamsters Local 419 states: "All we want to do is take the next nine months as a cooling–off period. We ask for no wage increase, no benefit increase, nothing, just leave everything status quo and work on the relationship over the next nine months, but the Toronto Humane Society is not interested in doing that," "I have been involved with the THS since 1996, different presidents, different board, and we've never had the crisis in labour relations that we have now." THS Union steward Gwen Painter, who has worked at the shelter for 20 years states The union just wants management to respect the collective agreement Labour–management relations must improve at the site for everyone's sake "It is not about money. It is not about parking". The following information was documented in the Union Flier, which was distributed to the public as they entered/exited the THS Shelter: "We're [the Union] on strike – but not for money. We're fighting for the animals that are depending on us" Allegations of sexual harassment "are rampant". Tim Trow "recently disciplined a worker for alleged sexual harassment and then promoted him to supervisor with authority over women" Animals are frequently found dead in their cages Dogs known to have bitten are placed in the Adoption room and adopted out to the"unsuspecting" public. Many of these same dogs are returned and re–adopted out before their 10–day observation period is over (a period of time required by the Board of Health following a confirmed bite). Many stray animals are immediately placed in adoption before the 5–day claim period (thus preventing an owner from claiming their lost pet) This also puts the public at risk as there is insufficient time to ensure the animal is healthy enough to be placed in adoption To ensure the Animal Adoption room is full during "Adoption–Free" weekends, animals recovering from surgery and those undergoing tests for health issues are place in adoption early. The THS website leads the public to believe there is a Wildlife Department – it doesn't exist Experienced wildlife staff have been replaced by management, unqualified to make decisions on sick and injured wild animals At that time, recently 19 infant squirrels were admitted without any qualified staff to care for them and feed them The Spay/Neuter Program for adopted animals no longer exists. Although adopters are provided a voucher entitling them to have their newly adopted pet neutered at the THS clinic, the existing waiting list is close to 500 As soon as Tim Trow was elected President, he cancelled the Employee Assistance Program This program provided special counselling services to all employees in order to help them deal with the highly emotional situations they encounter daily, as a result of working with the animals needs and concerns Under Tim Trow, the Board has refused two offers from the Union to resume negotiations. The flyer asks people to Write to the Public Trustee to demand an internal investigation of THS to discover how donor money is spent Stop support until the Board is replaced Write to Board members to put pressure on them to remove Tim Trow as President
May06	Earth Rangers cancels its five figure contract with THS. The contract started only one year prior (Feb05). As per Earth Rangers Wildlife Director, Kip Parker: Earth Rangers' cancelled the contract because they felt THS was "providing improper care of animals." Animals arrived there [Earth Rangers facility] from the society that should have been euthanized right away, while others weren't transferred in a timely way. "Many of them had to be euthanized." Kip Parker was one of the first staff members at THS's wildlife centre when it opened in the mid–1980s (he left in 1987). In the Jun18/06 Toronto Star article he comments on THS's present wildlife programs: "When I looked at [THS's] program to assess what they were doing, I was distressed. It was now gutted, trained staff had been removed, space had been cut back severely. It's been destroyed. It's disheartening. It makes me extremely sad, and it doesn't provide care for wildlife in the City of Toronto"
Aug06	Teamsters strike ends; union becomes decertified.
2006	THS's annual "Paws in the Park" cancelled without explanation. (This event has not been reinstated since. "Paws in the Park" was a very high profile event garnering huge public support and participation as well as media attention.)
2007	THS receives $100,000 grant from Trillium Foundation The Foundation is a grant–making Foundation and is an agency of the Government of Ontario. Less than a year later on Jul21/08, in the Legislative Assembly debates surrounding Bill 50 – An Act to Amend the Animal Welfare Act – Garfield Dunlop, Conservative MPP, asks President Tim Trow if THS "receive[s] any provincial money or any municipal money to help you [THS] succeed?" Trow replies: "Not a cent. We have no grants, no operating subsidies whatsoever. A hundred per cent of what we use to help animals we raise ourselves"
Mar08	Workers vote to bring in Universal Workers Union; certification process begins.
2006 to date	During the two year time frame (2006 to date) NO LESS THAN 120 THS EMPLOYEES HAVE EITHER BEEN FIRED, OR HAVE VOLUNTARILY RESIGNED DUE TO POOR WORKING ENVIRONMENT. All names have been confirmed by past and present employees.
Jul30/08	THS admits to: not composting animal waste (includes: litter; bedding from bird, hamster or rabbit cages) not recycling cans from cat and dog food THS won't pay a private recycling company because it's "too expensive". THS lays blame on city for not providing the service for free to them.
Sep25/08	Canada Revenue Agency finally receives THS's 2007 annual Registered Charity Information Return (“RCIR”). By law charities are required to file the return within 6 months of the charity's year end. THS's year end is December 31^st therefore by law their RCIR should have been filed by Jun30/08 Prior to the Jun30/08 deadline, and as per protocol, a notice was mailed to the THS, from the Charities Directorate, reminding them of the upcoming June30/08 deadline. Circa July/August a registered letter from the Charities Directorate was sent to the THS Treasurer advising them THS had a further 90days to meet the requirement or have their charitable registration revoked. Circa end of September a phone call reminder was made from the Charities Directorate to advise THS the Registered Letter had been sent and to remind them they had 90 days from the date of the Registered Letter to file the RCIR (with penalty of revocation of the charity's license) The notice of the 2008 THS AGM was dated Sep8/08 and advised that THS Internal Financial Statements were available to members upon request .