A plea against Ontario's ban Final Edition

• Published in: Expositor (Brantford)
• Main Author: Kelvin, Diane, Chelsea and Chayla Kirkland
• Format: Newspaper Article
• Language: English
• Published: Brantford, Ont Postmedia Network Inc 19.10.2004
• ISSN: 0837-3744

The Brant County SPCA adopted out more than 20 pit bull crosses this year alone. These dogs were temperament tested and adopted into families who were screened, loving and knowledgeable. What would have happened to those amazing dogs if a ban had been in place? What is a pit bull, and who will determine this? There is absolutely no test available, including DNA or other genetic testing that can positively identify a dog as being a pit bull. If council intends to determine what is, and what is not a pit bull by external features alone you will not only have placed a ban on pit bulls, which aren't a recognized breed, but all dogs that resemble a "pit bull" or share similar characteristics. This may open up the city to law suits if dogs are indiscriminately euthanized based on their appearance. A breed-specific ban is akin to determining that we have a gun problem and that .38 special handguns are used most often, so we will ban the .38 special rather than create a law that covers all handguns. That is, of course, preposterous, and so is a breed- specific ban for exactly the same reasons.