The real victims of Breed Specific Legislation

 

Montreal, April 27, 2015 – Audrey Lortie and her two rescued pit-bull type dogs, Novah and Ivy, live in Bois-des-Filion, a small municipality North of Laval. Novah and Ivy are friendly, vivacious and love people and other animals. Audrey considers Novah and Ivy to be members of her family.

Bois-des-Filion, unfortunately, has Breed Specific Legislation (BSL) which prohibits dogs which the municipality, or their agents, deem to have the physical characteristics of ‘pit-bulls’. The Montreal SPCA became aware of Audrey, Novah and Ivy`s story after Audrey pleaded for support from the public on her facebook page after she was given notice by Bois-des-Filion’ animal control provider, the Berger Blanc, that she was in violation of the municipal BSL and that she had 15 days to move, or get rid of her dogs or she would be fined and her dogs seized.

The Montreal SPCA immediately contacted elected officials from Bois-des-Filion, providing them with information in relation to BSL, and asking them to consider repeal this by-law. With the support of the Montreal SPCA, Audrey also made representations at the municipal council meeting about BSL and her own personal situation with her beloved dogs Novah and Ivy. Unfortunately, the elected officials from Bois-des-Filion were unwilling to reconsider the by-law and instead gave Audrey, Novah, Ivy and the rest of their family until June 30^th to move.The Montreal SPCA, along with veterinary orders (including the Quebec veterinary order and the Quebec veterinary association), behavior experts, and the rest of the animal welfare community agree that BSL is not the solution to reduce dog bites or keep citizens safe from dangerous dogs. “Research shows that by-laws such as these do not lower bite rates nor do they make our communities a safer place to live. They also fail to address the issue of dog aggression and bite safety in a comprehensive manner, which are directly related to the manner in which dog guardians care for their dogs” says Alanna Devine, jurist and Director of Animal Advocacy at the Montreal SPCA. “BSL also punishes responsible dog guardians because it is based on the false premise that even well behaved dogs from certain breeds (or with certain physical characteristics), such as Novah and Ivy are inherently ‘dangerous’” says Devine.

Audrey Lortie does not want to be forced to move, but she would never consider giving up Ivy or Novah. “Novah and Ivy are an integral part of my family! We currently are living in a home with a fenced back yard (which is great for them), and we could never afford a place like this somewhere else. If we are forced to move because of this by-law, we will have to find a small rental apartment that allows animals, and that could be difficult. I am devastated that the municipality is choosing to discriminate against me and my dogs simply because they happen to have big square heads”.

The Montreal SPCA is asking the public to help us encourage the municipality of Bois-des-Filion to repeal the BSL that is threatening to tear Audrey and her family apart, and to work with us in adopting progressive, effective breed neutral by-laws that identify and address individual dangerous dogs regardless of breed and that focus on responsible dog ownership.

Please contact Mayor Larocque and the Municipal counsellors of Bois-des-Filion, asking them to repeal the municipalities BSL and adopt an appropriate and effective solution to dangerous dogs that is not based on antiquated prejudice against certain dogs simply because of the way that they looks. Please send a polite e-mail to: ville@ville.bois-des-filion.qc.ca.

– 30 –

Media contact: Anita Kapuscinska, Media Relations Coordinator, Montreal SPCA, 514-226-3932, or anitak@spca.com.

About the Montreal SPCA Founded in Montreal in 1869, we were the first humane society in Canada and our mission is to:

• protect animals against negligence, abuse, and exploitation;
• represent their interests and ensure their well-being;
• raise public awareness and help develop compassion for all living beings.

For more information about the Montreal SPCA, please visit our website at www.spca.com.

 

Many Innocent Dogs And Owners Are Victims Of BSL

 

Numerous innocent dogs and owners have become victims due to the knee-jerk reactions of Governments, choosing to bring in Breed specific legislation instead of dealing with the real issue of problem owners. Many more innocent dogs and their owners are constantly under threat of becoming innocent victims.

If your dog is suspected to be an illegal breed by the authorities, it is not their responsibility to prove it is. It is up to you to prove it is NOT. This is often an impossible – and very expensive – task.

You can even end up with a Pit Bull by accident. If you cross something like a boxer and a labrador or a labrador and a mastiff, you end up with a dog that looks like a pit bull.

An example of just one of the many innocent dogs is Lennox, from Belfast in Ireland. This gentle dog was taken from his family and has been held for the last couple of years in a council death row pound. The family are not allowed to see him, or even know where he is held. They fight on in court to save his life, and the case has generated a lot of publicity. Loving Lennox served as a therapy pet for the family’s daughter, and she is especially badly affected by the situation.

**UPDATE**
Lennox has been sentenced to death by an Irish court.

**UPDATE 11/7/2012**

At 7am this morning, Belfast City Council murdered Lennox, an innocent dog who had never done anything wrong.

The heartless council, who ripped this loving pet from the heart of his family’s home & kept him in lonely, isolated conditions for over 2 years, did not even let his devastated family say goodbye.

For anyone not familiar with Lennox’ case, Lennox, like many other innocent dogs that have been murdered by the authorities, is a victim of breed specific legislation (BSL), such as The Dangerous Dog Act (DDA). Brought in in 1991 by the Government, the Act banned certain dog breeds, implying these breeds had the tendency to be dangerous & attack.

Since then, dog attacks have tripled. This is because it was never certain dog breeds that were dangerous, it was, and is, certain types of owners who purposely train dogs to be aggressive. These owners are attracted to dogs they feel have look intimidating, (even though by nature they are extremely gentle).

The Government decided that, rather than trying to hold bad owners responsible and punishing them, it would be easier to murder the main dog breeds that the bad owners were attracted to and training to be aggressive. Despite many of them being gentle, loving family dogs, that have never done anything wrong, if they appear on the dangerous dogs list, they were murdered. This continues to happen every day.

The reason dog attacks have gone up in number is that many of these bad owners have moved from training banned breeds to be aggressive, to doing it with legal breeds instead.

Tragically, there are numerous, less well known, cases like this happening wherever breed specific legislation exists.

Courtesy of ….. Animal Rights

 

The Human Victims of Breed Specific Legislation

 

Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light.

Helen Keller

About a week ago I received a voicemail from a thoroughly exhausted woman named Liz, asking me for help.  I listened to her story with growing outrage at the situation they had all been placed into.

Liz’s granddaughter, 4-year old Aleeah, has cystic fibrosis, and Liz’s son, who had just gained full custody of his daughter, was forced to move in with Liz so as to facilitate Aleeah’s constant medical care.  Part of Aleeah’s care includes wearing a compression vest for fifteen minute treatments, twice a day.  The vest is designed to help break up the mucous that is constricting her breathing, and it shakes her, starting with moderate vibration and ending with violent shakes. Needless to say, it can be traumatic for the child, and they had difficulties getting her to sit calmly through the twice-daily ordeal.

That’s where this little guy came into play.

The thought was that a puppy might be able to keep Aleeah’s mind off of the treatments.  And guess what?  It worked.  Aleeah was sitting still for the treatments, and Scrappy was right by her side, comforting her throughout the ordeal.

He hears the machine go on, and he’s right by her, ready to do his job. No, he wasn’t trained to do this.  He’s not a service dog, nor even a therapy dog.  He’s a dog who knows he has a job.  Unfortunately, according to a few, he’s something else.  A pit bull.  At least that’s what the City of Lakewood believes.  And since Aleeah and best friend moved into Lakewood, a city that still has outdated Breed Specific Legislation (“BSL”), this dynamic duo is about to be broken up.

Scrappy was forced to do a blood test to prove whether or not he actually is actually “pit bull”.  According to the City of Lakewood’s 2008 legislation, a “pit bull” is:

“any Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Pit Bull Terrier or American Staffordshire Terrier breed of dog, any dog of mixed breed which has the appearance and characteristics of being predominantly of such breeds, any dog commonly known as a pit bull, pit bull dog or pit bull terrier; or a combination of any of these breeds.”

Scrappy’s blood test is still pending. He has a hearing on February 23 pending the outcome of his blood test. If he proves to be “pit bull” by DNA, the hearing will go forward, most likely resulting in his being seized by the city.

Meanwhile, a little girl sits at her breathing machine, wondering if this will be the last time Scrappy will be there with her though it all.

I, personally, refuse to allow Scrappy to be taken away purely because of misguided and outdated legislation.  Aleeah needs Scrappy, and Scrappy needs Aleeah.  But even more so, we need to examine the nature of legislation such as this.  With so many cities overturning their breed specific legislation and welcoming all dogs into their cities, why do we still have such antiquated legislation in effect in such an otherwise tolerant city as Lakewood, Ohio?  Even Lakewood City Council is divided on the issue, which was decided eight years ago, with different members on the council at the time.  Council President Sam O’Leary had this to say to reporter Bruce Geiselman in a recent Cleveland.com article:

“I don’t speak for all of council, but I have heard from other council members they would be open to revisiting the topic this year,” O’Leary said. “Personally, I don’t think this is a policy that has support in science, and I think there have been a number of reports, studies and other information provided from groups ranging from the American Bar Association to the ASPCA that show from a public policy and public safety standpoint there are more effective and comprehensive ways to address this issue than breed-specific language.”

Aleeah’s grandmother and I attended Lakewood City Council’s meeting this past week, along with many supporters, to plead with council to revisit the archaic legislation.  Let’s hope that our words do not fall on deaf ears.  We ask that you join with our voices, not only with regard to Aleeah and Scrappy, but also in support of those dogs who didn’t garner as much attention as Scrappy has. For those victims of BSL who never make it out of a shelters.  Only 1 in 600 pit bulls will make it out of a shelter alive. Most are euthanized through no fault of their own.   Be a voice for those families who are unable to keep their beloved pets because of misguided notions about who pit bulls really are. Be a voice for Aleeah and Scrappy.

I’ve already added my voice, and will continue to do so.  Please consider adding yours.

Kerri Stacks speaks out on video…..

As of publication, we are just shy of 40,000 signatures in support of Aleeah and Scrappy.  Please click here to add your name and allow your voice to be heard.  We are also asking that you directly contact City of Lakewood, Ohio – Municipal Government, either on their Facebook page or via snail mail:

Will breed-specific legislation reduce dog bites?

 

James H. Bandow

 

A study by University of Washington researchers, which was recently published in PEDIATRICS, the publication of the American Academy of Pediatrics, found that children are more often bitten by their own dogs or those belonging to neighbours than by stray animals. Of the attacks studied, 21 of the dogs belonged to a neighbour, 13 were from the children’s own household, and only three were strays.

 

Three of those attacks were fatal, and one-third of the victims required treatment in an intensive care unit. Children under the age of five faced the greatest risk of being bitten by a dog, and medium and large breeds, including German Shepherds, Shepherd mixes and Rottweilers were the breeds most frequently identified as the biting dogs.

 

I found similar facts in my own detailed study of dog bites in the City of Toronto. While the University of Washington Study only looked at a small number of children who had been bitten, I did not restrict my study only to children but reviewed all of the 628 animal bites (human victims) reported to the Toronto Department of Public Health in 1993.

 

Although the Toronto study confirmed that young children tend to be victims of more serious bites, they do not make up the majority of victims. There may have been other bites that were not reported by the victims, those were probably not serious enough for the victims to seek medical attention. My study looks at dog bites only. Of the 628 reported bites, 419 (67%) were caused by dogs, 159 (25%) were inflicted by cats, and 50 (8%) represented bites by other animals.

 

Age of bite victims: Since there tends to be a general concern about children being victims of animal bites, I divided bite victims into one adult group over 18 years of age and three groups representing victims under 18 years of age. I found that bite victims fell into the following age categories: Victims to 6 yrs. old: 8.6% (36) Victims 7 to 12 yrs. old: 15.0% (63) Victims 13 to 17 yrs. old: 7.6% (32) Victims 18 yrs. and older: 68.8% (288)

General Manager, Animal Control Services, Department of Public Health, City of Toronto, 19 River Street, Toronto, Ontario M5A 3P1. Reprinted with permission from The AASAO Journal, Vol. 8, No. 1, Winter/Spring 1995/96 published by the Association of Animal Shelter Administrators of Ontario.

To see the full story follow the link….. NCBI

 

Veterinarians slam Breed Specific Legislation killing two innocent dogs in Australia

By DogHeirs Team

 

When Breed Specific dog laws were introduced in Australia last September, the Australian Veterinarian’s Association (AVA) was clearly opposed the legislation. Dr. Susan Maastricht of the AVA said. “Not only will it fail to prevent dog bites, innocent dogs can clearly end up being scapegoats because of the way they look.”

image: http://s3.amazonaws.com/heirnet/photos/26241/picture_328.png

Sadly, two dogs did end up being scapecoats this week. After a lengthy legal battle with a local council in Victoria, Nathan Laffan and Samantha Graham lost their fight to save their two dogs. Despite the fact that neither of the dogs had done anything wrong, the two were put down because of the way they looked. The AVA slammed the ruling, stating the laws have led to two innocent dogs being killed.

When they learned about the introduction of the law, Laffan contacted Moira Shire Council to ensure his dogs, Bear and Kooda, would be safe. A council officer who went out to the couple’s home identified the dogs as pit bulls and had them seized and taken to a local pound.

image: http://s3.amazonaws.com/heirnet/photos/26245/picture_327.png

According the the new law, councils are allowed to seize and destroy unregistered pit bull terriers and their crosses based on visual identification alone. The legislation provides guidelines for councils on how to identify pit bulls based on key markers including muscular build, head profile and size-to-weight ratio.

However, visual identification of pit bulls is especially subjective, as pit bulls are cross-bred in origin. Pups of one litter of pups can look completely different from one another and DNA tests can be inconclusive. “To some degree there is the potential for subjectivity,” said Dr. Maastricht.

Graham and Laffan challenged the council, saying their dogs were mistakenly identified as pit bulls. A local breeder stated the dogs came from a bull mastiff cross American bulldog and a staffie cross ridgeback. However, the council was not swayed.

The couple were given an hour’s notice and a just few minutes to say goodbye to Bear and Kooda.

image: http://s3.amazonaws.com/heirnet/photos/26257/kooda.jpg

They argued their dogs “wouldn’t hurt anyone”. “They were just the kindest and best dogs. They were always playful, we loved them so much,” Laffran said. “We would have trusted them around children more than most babysitters.”

Laffan is now calling for behavior tests to be used to assess a dog’s temperament, rather than simply appearance and breed targeting. “The laws are all messed up, they should never have brought them in,” Laffan said. “We were just trying to do the right thing and they [the council] just stabbed us in the back.”

Unfortunately for Laffan, Graham, Bear and Kooda, they became victims of Breed Specific Legislation that was introduced as a solution to reduce dog bites. The strict laws came into effect after the fatal mauling of Melbourne toddler Ayen Chol.

In similar circumstances, an innocent dog named Lennox has also been victimized by BSL in Northern Ireland. Read more about Lennox’s story and what you can do about BSL in your community here: Will the Lennox Tragedy impact breed specific legislation in your community?

image: http://s3.amazonaws.com/heirnet/photos/26249/saying-goodbye.jpg

Nathan Laffan and Samantha Graham saying their last “goodbye” to Kooda and Bear. Image via 9News.
Read more at http://www.dogheirs.com/dogheirs/posts/1377-veterinarians-slam-breed-specific-legislation-killing-two-innocent-dogs-in-australia#WrV8gRO05UhLwqod.99

 

For more on this story and many others please visit….. dogheirs

 

What The Experts Say!

 

Victoria Stilwell, president of the Victoria Stilwell Academy for Dog Training and Behavior, and CEO of Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Training

“Without exception, I stand firmly against BSL. The research has shown time and time again that BSL does not reduce dog bites in the areas where it is enacted, and has caused many innocent dogs to be taken from their families simply because of the way they look. Reducing dog bites starts instead by teaching the public to better understand their dog’s body and vocal language, promoting responsible guardianship and educating children, in particular, how to be safe around dogs.”

Jean Donaldson, founder and principal instructor of The Academy for Dog Trainers

“PPG’s position is to follow the evidence, which to date strongly suggests that BSL does not achieve the objective of decreasing dog bites or serious dog attacks. Instead, dog guardians should be held responsible for their pets’ conduct, regardless of breed, and dogs who have not offended should not be targeted.”

Janis Bradley, director of communications and publications, National Canine Research Council

“There is a growing awareness that BSL does not improve community safety and penalizes responsible dog owners and their family companions… If communities wish to implement effective dog bite prevention programs, recommendations continue to shift in favor of multifactorial approaches focusing on improved ownership and husbandry practices, better understanding of dog behavior, education of parents and children regarding safety around dogs, and consistent enforcement of dangerous dog/reckless owner ordinances in communities. Effective laws hold all dog owners responsible for the humane care, custody, and control of all dogs regardless of breed or type.”

Dr. Lynn Honeckman, veterinarian

“Any dog is capable of biting, regardless of breed, sex, or size… BSL has not been shown to effectively decrease the incidence of dog bites. Dog Bite Prevention should instead focus on an individual dog’s behavior, as well as educating people on the best ways to avoid bites from occurring. With BSL, the veterinary community is put into a challenging position of being asked to identify dog breeds based on appearance, and to report dogs who seem to fit a specified description. Most studies have shown that the visual identification of a breed rarely accurately identified the proper breed when compared to genetic testing.”

Louise Stapleton-Frappell, faculty member DogNostics Career College, and steering committee member The Pet Professional Guild and Doggone Safe

“Breed Specific Legislation causes untold suffering to countless dogs and their families around the world – dogs whose only ‘crime’ is that they are of a certain breed or type.  These dogs are both judged and condemned – often to incarceration and ultimately death – because of their appearance; with no regard being taken of their positive behavioral history, character traits, socialization, training or home environment.  Statistics clearly show that BSL does nothing to promote greater safety in the community. This costly, ineffective and discriminative legislation should be replaced with humane, effective legislation making all owners responsible for the appropriate care of their pets and accountable for their actions, whatever the breed.” 

Niki Tudge, President of The Pet Professional Guild, The DogSmith, DogNostics Career College and Doggone Safe

“PPG’s role is to educate and engage more pet professionals and pet owners, promoting the science based, result based force-free message, philosophy and training practices. As founder and president of PPG, I believe that this same goal should be applied to all pets. Research shows us that all animals learn in the same way and that each animal is an individual regardless of its breed. Many of our professional members interact, either personally or professionally, with many, if not all, of the breeds affected by breed specific legislation and will bear witness to the fact that animal learning is not breed specific. Just as important, it is critical to the welfare of our pets and their owners that animals are trained using force-free, positive reinforcement philosophies to prevent and mitigate aggressive behaviors due to fall out from the application of using punishment and fear to modify and change.”

 

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