Peanut is a mixed-breed rescued dog of unknown parentage. She has a fantastic family, a lovely temperament, and she has a few special needs in life because she is blind. Until last year, she also lived in the City of Richmond, which places restrictions on pit bull type dogs. Because a neighbour complained to the City about her perceived breed, her owners were told to muzzle her in accordance with the municipal bylaws.
While there’s nothing wrong with muzzles when they are needed, Peanut is not a dangerous dog, and the muzzle interfered with her use of other senses in trying to acclimate to the world as her vision deteriorated. Peanut’s parents petitioned the city asking for any kind of reasonable accommodation or exemption, presenting extensive documentation of Peanut’s friendly temperament, letters of support from neighbours and trainers, and offering to undergo a Canine Good Neighbour test. The City Council was unmoved, even as the story went viral and they faced public outrage.
This is what BSL looks like. Innocent families and harmless dogs are treated like criminals because of a dog’s perceived breed, regardless of the actual risk to community.
Luckily there is a happy update to this story – Peanut’s parents moved out of Richmond, a community they had lived in, paid taxes in, and built a business in. They now live in a beautiful new condo in a neighbouring city where Peanut can walk muzzle-free, engage with her environment, and be judged by her friendly demeanour and not by the shape of head.
Read the original story on our blog:
http://blog.hugabull.com/peanut/
#endBSL #notoBill128 #Canada150 #BSLbytes
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For background on the #BSLbytes campaign visit the HugABull blog: http://blog.hugabull.com/take-a-byte-out-of-bsl
21/150Peanut is a mixed-breed rescued dog of unknown parentage. She has a fantastic family, a lovely temperament, and she has a few special needs in life because she is blind. Until last year, she also lived in the City of Richmond, which places restrictions on pit bull type dogs. Because a neighbour complained to the City about her perceived breed, her owners were told to muzzle her in accordance with the municipal bylaws.
While there’s nothing wrong with muzzles when they are needed, Peanut is not a dangerous dog, and the muzzle interfered with her use of other senses in trying to acclimate to the world as her vision deteriorated. Peanut’s parents petitioned the city asking for any kind of reasonable accommodation or exemption, presenting extensive documentation of Peanut’s friendly temperament, letters of support from neighbours and trainers, and offering to undergo a Canine Good Neighbour test. The City Council was unmoved, even as the story went viral and they faced public outrage.
This is what BSL looks like. Innocent families and harmless dogs are treated like criminals because of a dog’s perceived breed, regardless of the actual risk to community.
Luckily there is a happy update to this story – Peanut’s parents moved out of Richmond, a community they had lived in, paid taxes in, and built a business in. They now live in a beautiful new condo in a neighbouring city where Peanut can walk muzzle-free, engage with her environment, and be judged by her friendly demeanour and not by the shape of head.
Read the original story on our blog:
http://blog.hugabull.com/peanut/
#endBSL #notoBill128 #Canada150 #BSLbytes
----
For background on the #BSLbytes campaign visit the HugABull blog: http://blog.hugabull.com/take-a-byte-out-of-bsl
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