SPCA Charges Fur Farmer with Animal Cruelty

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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SPCA has charged a Montérégie farmer who raised fox and mink for their fur, Jean-Luc Rodier, with six counts of neglect and animal cruelty. In case the charges are proved, the penalty may be as severe as 18 months in jail and $10,000 for each charge. SPCA’s director of animal advocacy, Alanna Devin, stated that “there are two counts of wilfully causing unnecessary pain and suffering, and two charges of the owner wilfully neglecting food, water, shelter and care.”

The Saint-Jude farm allegedly housed 100 foxes, 10,000 mink and two dogs, so the six charges were included for all three species. A criminal investigation was launched into the conditions at Visions JNJ Inc. by SPCA Montreal after a surprise visit in May 2014. Veterinarians accompanied SPCA staff at the time and found animals in less than ideal conditions and several foxes had to be euthanized, while two dogs on the property were also taken away.

Thereafter, Devine explained the situation and stated that “the SPCA went public with this case to show the shortcomings of the criminal code. All of these conditions — the overcrowding, the excrement, the smell of ammonia — are all legal in the fur business.”  Rodier has previously been found guilty of animal cruelty in 1996, when he was running a dog breeding business. According to Devine, this is the first time that a fur farmer is charged with animal cruelty in this country and “it is infuriating how he was able to have animals again after that charge in 1996.”