Blog

We asked people to share their stories of life under breed-specific legislation for our #BSLbytes campaign. Thank you to this Quebec resident for sharing her story of how BSL affects life not only out and about, and through harnesses and muzzles, but in the sanctity of one's own home.---"This really struck home for me today.We're all fighting for our precious dogs, but I'm going to take a minute to highlight another aspect of what #equipecoderre has done to us, the citizens of Montreal.I've lived in Verdun, Montreal since I was 17 years old, so almost 20 years now (minus a...

If there isn’t an epidemic of “pit bull” attacks why do we hear about them so often? Why does one fatal dog attack grab headlines and spark breed ban discussions while two dozen others barely register in the public consciousness?“News”, by definition, is what happens out of the ordinary. We don’t hear about the millions of cars that are driven safely to their destinations each morning. We don’t even hear about the ones that crashed, or the crashes that caused serious injuries. We hear about pileups or extreme cases of road rage, because those are dramatic and unusual.Today, with online...

Breed specific legislation is not evidence-based and lacks support by reputable academic or professional groups. We will be talking about some of these groups as part of our @BSLbytes campaign. Perhaps the best known animal welfare organization is the SPCA. While SPCAs across Canada operate independently, none support breed specific legislation. The BC SPCA’s position statement is a great read and does a good job outlining the failings of BSL and better alternatives.“The BC SPCA recognizes that inappropriate aggression by dogs against people and other animals is a serious threat to public safety, and that this issue must be addressed...

Most dogs in our community are mixed breed or of unknown parentage, and when it comes to breed specific legislation, animal control personnel are making judgement calls that can sentence a dog to a lifetime of restrictions, or even death. With the advent of DNA tests, some hoped that this question could be resolved by science. But while a DNA test can be a fun and interesting activity for the average pet owner, it should not be used to make life or death decisions for dogs in our community.The notion of distinct breeds is a newer one in human history....

In the realm of breed-neutral legislation, the United States is much more progressive than Canada (it hurts to say it, but it’s true). While the province of Ontario is the largest geographical breed ban in North America and the province of Quebec considers following on its heels, nearly half of American states have passed legislation against breed discrimination within their borders.  There are a total of 23 states to adopt anti-BSL legislation. 1. Arizona 2. California 3. Colorado 4. Connecticut 5. Delaware 6. Florida 7. Illinois 8. Maine 9. Massachusetts 10. Michigan 11. Minnesota 12. Nevada 13. New Jersey 14. New York 15. Oklahoma 16. Pennsylvania...