Alberta aims to improve animal safety with tougher penalties, more monitoring
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The Alberta government plans to update its approach to ensuring the well-being of animals by increasing fines and penalties.
According to Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation Minister RJ Sigurdson, the Animal Protection Amendment Act, or Bill 22, provides a more comprehensive definition of distress and abandonment, which will better allow peace officers to intervene or remove animals from harmful situations.
Indicators of crisis include factors such as access to adequate shelter and sanitation.
The amendments also expand the range of places and businesses that can be inspected which now includes boarding and grooming facilities.
If passed, the bill would also provide tougher penalties for offenders, increasing the maximum fine from $20,000 to $250,000 and providing for prison sentences of up to 12 months for serious crimes.
The bill would also crack down on offenders who harm an animal in another province and move to Alberta without facing the consequences of the crimes.
“We will be the first province in Canada to be able to enforce prohibition orders from other provinces,” said Lena Niblock, executive director of the Alberta SPCA.
“Allowing our peace officers to go after repeat criminals and bad actors no matter how much they harm animals in this country.”
The Alberta government is proposing changes to the Animal Protection Act for the first time in two decades. The new law proposes tougher penalties for those found guilty of neglecting or abusing animals. As Travis McEwan reports, the bill is being praised by some animal welfare advocates.
Niblock said increasing fines and providing prison sentences for offenders “will further strengthen accountability and deterrence and show the public that animals are important and deserve the full force of the law.”
Recent cases of animal endangerment include two women being charged in November 2025 following a large-scale investigation into animal cruelty allegations in northwestern Alberta.
More than 300 animals were surrendered from both In the Woods Animal Rescue’s locations in Marie Reine, Alta., and the Municipal District of Smoky River.
