Whois & Analysis for petharbor.com

An animal shelter or pound is a place where stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals, mostly dogs and cats, and sometimes sick or wounded wildlife are brought.

While no-kill shelters exist, it is sometimes policy to euthanize sick animals, and any animal that is not claimed quickly enough by a previous or new owner.

In Europe, of 30 countries included in a survey, all but four (Czech republic, Germany, Greece, and Italy) permitted the killing of healthy stray dogs.

Critics believe the new term "animal shelter" is generally a euphemism for the older term "pound".

The word "pound" had its origins in the animal pounds of agricultural communities, where stray livestock would be penned or impounded until claimed by their owners.

Some shelters even have sick tropical animals.

A Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) is a common name for non-profit animal welfare organizations around the world.

The oldest SPCA organization is the RSPCA, which was founded in England in 1824.

SPCA organizations operate independently of each other and campaign for animal welfare, assist in the prevention of cruelty to animals cases, rehabilitation and finding homes for maltreated and unwanted animals that can be reestablished into new homes.

Policies regarding animal euthanasia, handling feral cats, and similar issues vary by organization.

A humane society is a group that aims to stop human or animal suffering due to cruelty or other reasons.

In many countries, the term is used mostly for societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals (SPCAs).

In the United Kingdom, it may also be a society that provides a waterways rescue, prevention, and recovery service, or that gives awards for the saving of human life (see: Royal Humane Society).

A pet or companion animal is an animal kept primarily for a person's company, protection, or entertainment rather than as a working animal, sport animal, livestock, or laboratory animal.

Popular pets are often noted for their attractive appearances and their loyal or playful personalities.

Canada (French) is a country in the northern half of North America.

Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering, making it the world's second-largest country by total area and the fourth-largest country by land area.

Canada's border with the United States is the world's longest binational land border.

The majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer.

Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its land territory being dominated by forest and tundra and the Rocky Mountains.

It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, many near the southern border.

One third of the population lives in the three largest cities: Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.

Its capital is Ottawa, and other major urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg and Hamilton.