The young entrepreneur was convinced that she was fulfilling a dream by re-establishing the Expedition Mi-Loup kennel, but she encountered unpleasant surprises, especially with regard to veterinary care, which one of the owners found “very secondary”.
• Also read: Alleged animal cruelty at Expedition Mi-Loup: “We slaughtered more than 1,000” puppies in four years, claims a former employee
• Also read: Mi Loup Expedition: Dozens of puppies were frozen and other dogs “gassed,” according to a former guide.
Tanya Fournier-Veilleux realized a “dream” in 2020 by joining the shareholder circle of the Île d'Orléans establishment in 2020 in the form of a new company called “XP Miloup”.
In the trial of Antoine Simard, Élisabeth Leclerc and Édouard Parent for animal cruelty, she explained that she had been involved in the world of sled dogs from a young age and that she seized the “opportunity” when she saw on Facebook that Simard was looking for a buyer.
She eventually became co-owner of the restaurant with him and Leclerc.
“Thank the dog”
According to her, she only became aware of the serious allegations against her ex-business partners in 2022 after a report was broadcast on CTV.
She then confronts Simard with the allegations in the documentation and the “gas chamber” that was used to kill animals.
He reportedly mentioned that it was too difficult for him to “pull” a dog. that “this is what he found.” [le] easier because he could thank the dog for his years of work by simply putting him in a crate.
As for the possibility of euthanasia at the vet, “he replied that he would prefer it since it cost $300.” [ne] “Don’t go there,” says the young woman.
Shocked by the whole affair, in April of that year she put all the dogs in the kennel up for adoption and left the business, which closed.
Like an apartment
In addition, the witness reported that during the trial he had several disagreements with Antoine Simard “related to veterinary care.”
According to her, the nearest clinic did not know that there were sled dogs on the Île d'Orléans. Additionally, Simard seemed annoyed by his visits to the vet.
For example, she claims he criticized her in 2022 for spending $2,400 on a “very sick” dog that was put up for adoption.
“He said to me on the phone: ‘As a tenant, are you going to renovate an apartment before you leave?’ As if the dog, since it was going to be given away, didn’t deserve the care it needed. [pour] that he survives. Therefore, veterinary care was very secondary to Mr Simard,” she concludes.
Other problems
When she arrived in 2020, other elements were wrong, according to her.
Furthermore, she claims that one day Simard gave her the contact details of his feed supplier, which was actually fox feed.
“He told me it was the cheapest product available and he could buy tons of it.”
He would have told him to only give it to adults and not puppies because “we don't really know why, but it drives them crazy.”
She also raised eyebrows when she got her hands on the animal registry, which she said was “not up to date and very incomplete,” or when she saw the outside kennels, which were poorly repaired, making them easily accessible were his to spill.
“The dogs were even introduced to me by number, so some dogs didn’t have names,” she said.
The trial against the three co-defendants continues on Friday.
Further allegations were heard in the trial
About the dog registry: “I had no further information about the parents, the litters, whether the dogs were related or not… With the dogs of the Mi-Loup expedition, tracking was impossible. There was just no information.”
“When I arrived, the first thing I noticed was the state of the place. First everything that was […] Shelters for dogs, hence their kennels.”
Regarding the acquisition of dogs to bring new blood into the pack: “Mr. Simard confronted me personally and told me it was a waste of money and that I should just put the money into snowmobiles instead of dogs.”
— Tanya Fournier-Veilleux, former business partner at the “XP Miloup” kennel.
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