UPDATE - 06/07/2016 - 10:50am Pit Bull owners in Quebec can sleep easy, at least for now. Shortly after a protest against the law at the town hall, Mayor Regis Labeaume announced: "We won't eliminate Pit Bulls. We wanted to hit hard so things would move." Heinsists that the law was intended to make things safer forthe population.For the moment, the government is not legally able to implement the law, which stated that Pit Bull owners would have to get rid of their beloved animals.Quebec will probably take the same route as Ontario in banning Pit Bulls, though itnow seems unlikely that owners will have to part with their pups.
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ORIGINAL ARTICLEDespitesignificant proofthat there is no such thing as"dangerous" dog breeds, two major Canadian cities have just announced plans for new legislation which willban Pit Bulls.The mayor of Quebec City, Regis Labeaume, said in a statement on June 16 that the plan is intended to protect children and families. He announced:
In the next six months owners of pit bulls will have to resolve their situation, and that means getting rid of their pit bulls.
Source: @NationalGeographic
The ban comes after a fatal dog attack in Quebec City in June of this year.Under this law, the 307 Pit Bull owners in Quebec will have to either get rid of their beloved dog, or move somewhere else. The ban will include all Staffordshire Bull Terriers as well as their mixes and crosses.Owners will be fined 1000$ for the first offence and 2000$ if it is repeated.
Source: @David Kanigan
The law was met with general outrage in Quebec, with comments on Labeaume's Facebook video rightly arguing:
This does nothing to address the problem of terrible pet owners and animal abuse which so often causes these kinds of tragedies.
But just a few days after Quebec City announced the ban, which will come into effect fromJanuary 1 2017, Montreal announced plans to follow suit on Saturday 18 June.Though dogs that already live in the city will not have to leave (contrary to the Quebec law), they will have to be muzzled and registered.
Barkpostreportsthat the Montreal SPCA is working to ensure that Pit Bull bans don't become the norm.
Source: @Pinterest
In a statement, the SPCA has said that "Breed-specific legislation simply does not work."They have promised to use their resources to address the problem properly, saying that "We cannot afford, and nor should our animals suffer or die for, a plan that has been a proven failure."You can see the video of Labeaume talking about the new laws here:
We can only hope that authorities will turn to education rather than placing breed-specific bans on cities.Here at Holidog, we cannot stress enough that there is no such thing as bad breeds, only bad owners. Treat a dog with love, and they will only givemore love back.
H/t: @BarkPost
Featured Image: @QuotesLike
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29 Photos That Prove That So-Called 'Dangerous Dog Breeds' Are Really Just Big Softies
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