What would you choose: your home or your pet? That's the decision seven seniors in Moncton, N.B., are now being forced to make. [caption id="attachment_8932" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="(Photo: Matthew Paul Argall)"] [/caption]

The pet-owning residents of Lions Tower, a subsidized complex for seniors, have been told to evict their pets or face eviction themselves after a fellow tenant complained of there being animals in the building. (While the building's lease specifically says no pets allowed, and there's also a provincial ban on pets in subsidized housing, many residents have lived in the building for years with their pets without a problem.) With many of the seniors living off of their pensions, moving is not a financially viable option. And by surrendering their pets, residents would be saying goodbye to a friend who has been shown to enrich a person's health and well-being, whether a senior or not. Protesters as well as politicians are making their voices heard. As reported in the Toronto Sun:

"NDP Leader Dominic Cardy has written Social Development Minister Sue Stultz asking her to reverse the order and calling on the province to either scrap the no-pets rule, or enact legislation like Ontario's that prevents people from being evicted for having pets. 'There is significant research linking pet ownership and reductions in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and other disorders that often disproportionately afflict seniors and those living in assisted housing,' Cardy wrote.

I hope this leads to a thoughtful discussion and re-examination of the legislation. Do you think the province should reconsider its ban on pets in subsidized housing?