Pit bull cross released from quarantine Fate of dog yet to be decided

http://www.intelligencer.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1228468

I find this editorial a very strange, mixed up story. I've read in quite a few other articles where a percentage of different breeds have made up a mutt. There is no such test and the only possible way of remotely trying to find out the breeds involved would probably be the Canadian Kennel Club...NOT ACC.

Animal Care Centre are simply employees that do their jobs to the best of their abilities and follow orders, bylaws and laws, but they are NOT experts in the breeds of dogs.

Yet, what is the most dangerous is that ACC can take a person to court demanding that a so called dog is in fact a Pit bull by percentage.

I'm sure there are many mixes that have Terrier in them, but that does not make them a Pit bull.

It also sounds like they are releasing this dog back to it's owner even though they have not yet determined it's fate.

Pierce also mentions that Armstrong was "somewhat apologetic" when she asked them to apologize to Victoria Broadbent for the attack of her dog that lead to death. Who is Pierce to say "somewhat apologetic"? Either she was or she wasn't and if she wasn't, she wouldn't have said anything at all.

It's obvious ACC wants the dog dead and what a better way than make the owner look bad too.

As for Armstrong, I think she better get her dog trained properly and get the dog aggression looked after. If a dog isn't well socialized, it shouldn't be placed with a whole bunch of dogs in the first place and let it run loose. You are just asking for trouble.

If you own a dog, it's your responsibility to make sure it is trained, maintained and contained properly as well as socialized as a young pup if possible.

Pit bull cross released from quarantine
Fate of dog yet to be decided
Posted By By W. Brice McVicar

A cross-bred pit bull that savaged and ultimately killed a dog at Belleville's dog park last month has been released from quarantine, but a decision has not yet been made on its fate. The animal, which was placed under quarantine for 10 days after the Sept. 18 attack, was released from quarantine on Monday. This means the dog can once again be in public places such as the dog park.

"We've released the animal from isolation and that's where our involvement ends," Dave Dodgson, senior inspector with the Hastings and Prince Edward Counties Health Unit, told The Intelligencer. "The rabies vaccination for the animal is up-to-date."

Late last week, Belleville police and Ron Pierce of Pierce Animal Control visited the woman who brought the pit bull cross to the local dog park. The Quinte West woman, Rose Armstrong, was charged under the Dog Owners Liability Act with allowing the dog to attack a person, allowing the dog to attack a domestic animal, failure to muzzle a pit bull, not having the pit bull on a leash and allowing a pit bull to "behave in a manner that poses a menace to the safety of persons and domestic animals." Pierce said there is no doubt the canine is partly pit bull. "It's definitely a cross. The muzzle on it isn't as wide as it should be and I'd say it's about 75 per cent pit bull," he said.

In 2005, the Ontario government passed a law with strict guidelines surrounding pit bulls including a ban on the dogs. Pit bulls that were alive at the time of the bill's creation were grandfathered but breeding of the dogs is no longer permitted. The legislation also requires pit bulls, when in public, to be on a leash and be muzzled. The law, had the dog been a full-blooded pit bull, would have allowed Pierce to seize the animal.

Pierce said the next step is to wait for the Oct. 20 court date to see what happens. He said one possible outcome is that a judge will issue a destruction order for the animal. In his conversation with Armstrong, Pierce said she was "somewhat apologetic" for the attack and asked an apology be delivered to Victoria Broadbent, the owner of the dog which died of the injuries it suffered during the attack.

Though Armstrong can now take her dog back out in public, Pierce said he plans to call her and advise her against it. "I'm going to give her a shout back and let her know if she does take that dog out around other animals she's taking quite a chance," he said. "The dog has an aggression problem, it's aggressive toward other dogs."

Calls to Armstrong by The Intelligencer were not returned.
bmcvicar@intelligencer.ca
Article ID# 1228468