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Breed Specific Legislation
FIND THE “PIT BULL”
Any one of these dogs could be mistaken for a “pit bull” terrier. All are at risk of the general public mis-identifying any one of these breeds. The pictures are taken from www.pitbullsontheweb.com Try and identify the dogs below. Check out the website and try the test there as well, more pictures available there. You may be surprised! Bill 132 lists specific breeds but also states, “any dog that resembles a pit bull terrier”. Well, many of the breeds below could be mistaken for a pitbull, and often are. The answers to the identity of each of these breeds can be found at the bottom of this page.
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Bill 132 is bad law because…
1. Pit bull terriers are not the sole or primary source of dog bites and attacks. If the Ontario government truly wishes to reduce harm from dog bites and attacks, it must pass legislation that addresses the source of the harm - dogs that bite and attack, regardless of breed. Bill 132 does NOTHING to prevent dog bites and attacks by other breeds. Breed specific legislation does not properly, appropriately or completely address the source of the harm. In Canada, there have been 25 deaths caused by 12 different breeds. Which breeds, you ask? Breed doesn’t matter in a bite or attack. A Pomeranian killed a baby. Horses have killed people by biting.
2. Bill 132 is estimated to cost over $10 million dollars to enforce. The UK spent tens of millions of pounds on enforcing its Dangerous Dogs Act, admitted to be a failure.
3. This proposed legislation is discriminatory. It brands and treats responsible, law abiding dog owners and their dogs as criminals.
4. The Bill is legislative malpractice. The government has ignored the expert advice and experience presented at the hearings of the Standing Committee on the Legislative Assembly which proves that breed specific legislation is ineffective and extremely expensive for taxpayers.
5. The proposed legislation contains a deliberately vague description of the targeted breeds, and many deliberately vague terms - menace, bite, public safety, public place. This makes compliance very difficult and the proposed legislation is subject to arbitrary and uneven interpretation and enforcement that will be based on one person's opinion, possibly coloured by personal bias and media hysteria.
6. The deliberately vague definition of “pit bull” makes the proposed legislation subject to arbitrary and uneven interpretation and enforcement based on one person's opinion, which may be coloured by personal bias and media hysteria. The history of breed specific legislation in the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia is full of horror stories of seizures without cause, and breed misidentification.
7. The proposed legislation contains a frightening broadening of police powers to allow search and seizure without a warrant, without any offence having been committed.
8. The test for conviction under this proposed legislation is less than that used for other charges. "Balance of probabilities" is a lesser test than "reasonable doubt". Dog owners have less protection in Ontario courts than murderers and pedophiles.
9. A pit bull terrier is automatically sentenced to death if the dog has "bitten or attacked a person or domestic animal or behaved in a manner that poses a menace..." “Bite”, “attack” and “menace” are as vague as the description of “pit bull”. Misinterpretation of dog behaviour (“menacing” can be a misinterpretation of excitement or pleasure) may cause a dog’s death. There is no exemption for provocation. A pit bull terrier defending itself or its owner against attack must die. Any other dog that bites or attacks is not subject to the same fatal penalty.
10. Since menace, bite and attack are deliberately vague, a court's finding may be made on inaccurate information. A dog's actions may be misinterpreted by a person who has no understanding of dog behaviour or even know what breed the dog truly is, possibly coloured by personal bias and media hysteria.
11. The proposed legislation automatically sentences a “pit bull” to death if the owner contravenes a provision or regulation under the Act. Considering the deliberate vagueness of this proposed legislation, a dog may be seized and killed because the owner took its muzzle off to give the dog a drink of water in hot weather or because the dog was not muzzled in the owner's car. Both situations are factual, and occurred in the United Kingdom under its Dangerous Dogs Act.
12. A document PURPORTING to be signed by a veterinarian can be used as evidence in a prosecution for an offence under the legislation as proof that the dog is a pit bull, without proof of the authenticity of the signature and without proof that the signatory is in fact a member of the College of Veterinarians. In other words, prosecution can wave a piece of paper and is not required to prove who signed it, or that the person who signed it is in fact a veterinarian.
13. People are being deprived of their livelihoods without having committed any offence. Dog breeders, trainers and handlers are being criminalized.
14. The government is discouraging tourism, dog shows and dog sports that bring millions of dollars into Ontario’s economy.
Brendan Crawley, spokesman
for the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General, said visitors with pit
bulls (remember how vague that description is) would most likely be given
a warning — and the opportunity to leave with the dog — before being sanctioned.
He added that the government is contemplating an exemption for show dogs that
come from outside the province, provided the owners "leave immediately after the
show."
Click here to link to a letter from the
Ontario Director of the
Dog Legislation Council of Canada
ANSWERS TO FIND THE PIT BULL
Boxer
Dogue De Bordeau
Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog
Great Swiss Mountain Dog
Vizsla
Ridgeback
Dogo Argentino
Labrador Retriever
Bull Mastiff
Jack Russell
Fila Brasileiro
Presa Canario
American Bulldog
Cane Corso
American Pit Bull Terrier
Catahoula
Alano Espanol
Boerboel
Thai Ridgeback
Cadeboo