This is a placeholder text
Group text
by Uber Land on 23 August 2009 - 22:08
http://www.examiner.com/x-3791-Pet-Life-Examiner~y2009m8d22-Calgary-finds-the-laws-to-stop-dog-bites-and-shelter-crowding
Calgary finds the laws to stop dog bites and shelter crowding
August 22, 2:42 PMPet Life ExaminerSharon SaksonPrevious 1 comment Print Email RSS Subscribe Subscribe
Get alerts when there is a new article from the Pet Life Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use. Email Address
Include other special offers from Examiner.com
Terms of Use
Golden Retriever puppy
Calgary, Canada, seems to be a beacon of light in the controversy over how to reduce dog bites and unwanted pets. We keep trying to find the right legislation to pass that will end the problem. No town has come close -- except Calgary.
They’ve done it by enforcing laws that require the owners of pets to responsible for them. Responsible for keeping them on leash, keeping them quiet, keeping them from being a threat to the community, keeping them from ending up in public shelters, keeping them from producing unwanted puppies.
They have addressed issues of dog bites, dog licensing compliance and the enforcement of animal-related laws.
Calgary’s dog population is estimated to be about 110,000 animals. About 101,000 (92%) are licensed. Anyone failing to license their dog faces a fine of $250 -- considerably more than most cities, making it a cheaper alternative to license your dog than to not license him.
The same fine -- $250 -- is levied against anyone charged with not cleaning up after their dogs in public areas. Police are instructed to patrol and enforce this rule.
Most cities the size of Calgary (1.2 million people) deals with thousands of dog bite incidents each year. Calgary had 145 cases in 2008 and 80 incidents so far this year.
If police have to get a court order to have a troublesome or ill dog destroyed, that dog’s owner pays the fees associated with having the animal put down. If a dog has been declared vicious and bites again, its owner pays thousands of dollars in fines.
One woman was fined $18,000 when her two border collies constantly bit people. She never obeyed the conditions placed on her so her dogs were declared vicious and destroyed.
Bill Bruce, Calgary’s director of animal and bylaw services and the municipality’s chief bylaw enforcement officer says the program emphasizes holding the owner accountable. “We have built an entire program that is not an animal control program — it’s a responsible pet ownership program,” he told The Western Star newspaper. “It starts from the first time we see trouble with a dog, it’s a process of education and enforcement to create change to get the dog owner to take responsibility.”
All dog bites are investigated. “No dog is entitled to bite under any circumstance, unless it’s something like you accidentally stepped on it and it nipped you,” said Bruce.
Calgary’s program is a $5-million-a-year operation funded entirely from licenses of animals and penalties for violations. It costs $31 to license a spayed or neutered dog for a year. Licensing an intact animal costs $52. An animal can be licensed 24 hours a day, seven days a week over the phone or on the city’s website.
The animal control office inserts a microchip containing a wide range of information about the animal in every pet adopted from the shelter. Microchips are not mandatory, but pet owners are encouraged to do so.
Licensing a dog also means the animal will be returned to the owner without question the first time it gets lost or loose. “We’ve added value to having your dog licensed with our ‘return to owner’ program
Calgary finds the laws to stop dog bites and shelter crowding
August 22, 2:42 PMPet Life ExaminerSharon SaksonPrevious 1 comment Print Email RSS Subscribe Subscribe
Get alerts when there is a new article from the Pet Life Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use. Email Address
Include other special offers from Examiner.com
Terms of Use
Golden Retriever puppy
Calgary, Canada, seems to be a beacon of light in the controversy over how to reduce dog bites and unwanted pets. We keep trying to find the right legislation to pass that will end the problem. No town has come close -- except Calgary.
They’ve done it by enforcing laws that require the owners of pets to responsible for them. Responsible for keeping them on leash, keeping them quiet, keeping them from being a threat to the community, keeping them from ending up in public shelters, keeping them from producing unwanted puppies.
They have addressed issues of dog bites, dog licensing compliance and the enforcement of animal-related laws.
Calgary’s dog population is estimated to be about 110,000 animals. About 101,000 (92%) are licensed. Anyone failing to license their dog faces a fine of $250 -- considerably more than most cities, making it a cheaper alternative to license your dog than to not license him.
The same fine -- $250 -- is levied against anyone charged with not cleaning up after their dogs in public areas. Police are instructed to patrol and enforce this rule.
Most cities the size of Calgary (1.2 million people) deals with thousands of dog bite incidents each year. Calgary had 145 cases in 2008 and 80 incidents so far this year.
If police have to get a court order to have a troublesome or ill dog destroyed, that dog’s owner pays the fees associated with having the animal put down. If a dog has been declared vicious and bites again, its owner pays thousands of dollars in fines.
One woman was fined $18,000 when her two border collies constantly bit people. She never obeyed the conditions placed on her so her dogs were declared vicious and destroyed.
Bill Bruce, Calgary’s director of animal and bylaw services and the municipality’s chief bylaw enforcement officer says the program emphasizes holding the owner accountable. “We have built an entire program that is not an animal control program — it’s a responsible pet ownership program,” he told The Western Star newspaper. “It starts from the first time we see trouble with a dog, it’s a process of education and enforcement to create change to get the dog owner to take responsibility.”
All dog bites are investigated. “No dog is entitled to bite under any circumstance, unless it’s something like you accidentally stepped on it and it nipped you,” said Bruce.
Calgary’s program is a $5-million-a-year operation funded entirely from licenses of animals and penalties for violations. It costs $31 to license a spayed or neutered dog for a year. Licensing an intact animal costs $52. An animal can be licensed 24 hours a day, seven days a week over the phone or on the city’s website.
The animal control office inserts a microchip containing a wide range of information about the animal in every pet adopted from the shelter. Microchips are not mandatory, but pet owners are encouraged to do so.
Licensing a dog also means the animal will be returned to the owner without question the first time it gets lost or loose. “We’ve added value to having your dog licensed with our ‘return to owner’ program
by Uber Land on 23 August 2009 - 22:08
“We’ve added value to having your dog licensed with our ‘return to owner’ program,” said Bruce.
The responsible pet owner program in Calgary is based on four principles: licensing and permanently identifying the pet, spaying or neutering, properly socializing and taking care of the animal’s health and not allowing the pet to become a nuisance to the community.
“We don’t need a lot of complicated laws or take measures like banning breeds. We don’t limit how many animals you can have. We just hold you to those four principles.”
Some great ideas there. City officials in other towns may want to take note.
The responsible pet owner program in Calgary is based on four principles: licensing and permanently identifying the pet, spaying or neutering, properly socializing and taking care of the animal’s health and not allowing the pet to become a nuisance to the community.
“We don’t need a lot of complicated laws or take measures like banning breeds. We don’t limit how many animals you can have. We just hold you to those four principles.”
Some great ideas there. City officials in other towns may want to take note.
by ocoey on 24 August 2009 - 01:08
I have not researched this but on the surface it sounds almost too good to be true!
by Uber Land on 24 August 2009 - 04:08
it sounds good to me!
by SitasMom on 24 August 2009 - 09:08
four principles: licensing and permanently identifying the pet, spaying or neutering, properly socializing and taking care of the animal’s health and not allowing the pet to become a nuisance to the community.
if you have dogs, be responsible for them or pay the price........how simple can it get???
if you have dogs, be responsible for them or pay the price........how simple can it get???
by DebiSue on 24 August 2009 - 17:08
Works for me! Wish they would do that here. The only ones who would have a problem with it are problems causers anyway.
by tintallie on 06 September 2009 - 16:09
Having grown up in Calgary, I can attest to never really encountering that many problem dogs (or owners) in the 30+ years here. I was walking my dog one time in the suburbs and encountered TWO Presa Canarios at large, no owner in sight because the two dogs had escaped the low railing surrounding their walkout basement with a dog door. It worried me that the one of the dogs outweighed me, but it was worse that there were two loitering around on the streets in a neighbourhood full of little kids.
A quick call to Animal Control at the City of Calgary was enough to bring a By-Law Officer down to the address and they were fined for only having one of the two dogs licensed. Out here in the rural area surrounding Calgary, the people don't hold to the same standard and loose dogs are everywhere at large ...
Here's an article from the Calgar Herald about recent charges laid against a woman who let her two pit bull "type" dogs attack and maul two little girls and an elderly man in a separate incident. She was charged with $10000s in fines and they have already euthanized one of the dogs. The other one is apparently been hidden from authorities.
www.calgaryherald.com/life/Woman+faces+hefty+fines+over+attacks/1766663/story.html
A quick call to Animal Control at the City of Calgary was enough to bring a By-Law Officer down to the address and they were fined for only having one of the two dogs licensed. Out here in the rural area surrounding Calgary, the people don't hold to the same standard and loose dogs are everywhere at large ...
Here's an article from the Calgar Herald about recent charges laid against a woman who let her two pit bull "type" dogs attack and maul two little girls and an elderly man in a separate incident. She was charged with $10000s in fines and they have already euthanized one of the dogs. The other one is apparently been hidden from authorities.
www.calgaryherald.com/life/Woman+faces+hefty+fines+over+attacks/1766663/story.html
by luvdemdogs on 06 September 2009 - 17:09
If that's the extent of the law, then its effect is entirely dependant on the relative wealth or poverty of the dog owner. I doubt it would be able to withstand serious challenge.
by SitasMom on 06 September 2009 - 20:09
We need those laws here!
http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/bulletins_read/328355.html
the bull poop we have to put up with!
http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/bulletins_read/328355.html
the bull poop we have to put up with!
by tintallie on 06 September 2009 - 20:09
@SitasMom
I haven't yet encountered that much prejudice from strangers yet because most of them don't realize that my puppy who is solid black is a GSD. I keep getting people asking me, "Aren't GSDs supposed to be black and tan?"
However, the puppy kindergarten class I took her to for socialization (we are working with a Schutzhund trainer privately as well) had a pet trainer who always said stuff like, "Shepherds are known for raising their hackles a lot. Shepherds have this intense stare that pose a threat to other dogs. Oh you need to watch your puppy so that her play doesn't elevate into aggression." We were probably sidelined most of the puppy play time because the pet trainer didn't feel that Miya could handle playing with the other puppies (most of which were puntable sized ones).
Miya is 4.5 months old and she was very high energy in class, but our trainer (the Sch one) put it very succinctly, "She's in an environment with 8 other puppies who all want to play. Of course she's going to be hyper." I've taken her to visit lots of people in the neighbourhood and even into sporting goods stores like Bass Pro Shops and she has garned nothing but praise for how well behaved and friendly she is!
As much as I want to believe that it is the owner and not the breed, I am cautious around strange dogs regardless of breeds and am leaning towards the fact that the wrong type of people own and do not research before buying certain breeds.
I haven't yet encountered that much prejudice from strangers yet because most of them don't realize that my puppy who is solid black is a GSD. I keep getting people asking me, "Aren't GSDs supposed to be black and tan?"
However, the puppy kindergarten class I took her to for socialization (we are working with a Schutzhund trainer privately as well) had a pet trainer who always said stuff like, "Shepherds are known for raising their hackles a lot. Shepherds have this intense stare that pose a threat to other dogs. Oh you need to watch your puppy so that her play doesn't elevate into aggression." We were probably sidelined most of the puppy play time because the pet trainer didn't feel that Miya could handle playing with the other puppies (most of which were puntable sized ones).
Miya is 4.5 months old and she was very high energy in class, but our trainer (the Sch one) put it very succinctly, "She's in an environment with 8 other puppies who all want to play. Of course she's going to be hyper." I've taken her to visit lots of people in the neighbourhood and even into sporting goods stores like Bass Pro Shops and she has garned nothing but praise for how well behaved and friendly she is!
As much as I want to believe that it is the owner and not the breed, I am cautious around strange dogs regardless of breeds and am leaning towards the fact that the wrong type of people own and do not research before buying certain breeds.
Contact information Disclaimer Privacy Statement Copyright Information Terms of Service Cookie policy ↑ Back to top