Dear Montreal,
On September 27, 2016, your city council voted to ban pit bull-type dogs in your city due to an accident with a woman who was killed by a pit bull because of the owner's inability to train and tame the dog. When I first heard this news I was upset because how do you ban a breed of animals? Then I found out what this actually meant. This meant that you would not allow for any pit bull-type dogs to be adopted out of shelters and they were to be euthanized, this also meant that any owners of these dogs had to pay $150 to have a background check on the owner themselves and their dog background checked, they would have to wear muzzles when out in public and they would have to use shorter leashes when taking them out. If all of this was not done those dogs too would be euthanized. When I found out what the ban of this breed of dog really meant I was appalled; they were willing to kill THOUSANDS of innocent dogs.
Now, I was not the only person that was outraged, millions of people all over the place made petitions, raised money and spoke out against the law. Along with these people, Montreal was dealing with a lawsuit filed against them by The Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, SPCA. On October 2, Quebec Superior Court Justice, Louis Gouin, temporarily suspended the ban until he made a further ruling on October 5. Many people were upset about this because they believe that Montreal would be a safer place without these dogs in their city, but let's not forget that Ontario has had this same type of ban since 2005. The ban has done nothing but tear families apart, kill innocent dogs, and it definitely has not reduced the number of dog bites in the province. This was to act as a safeguard to ensure that people of the city could still adopt pit bull-type dogs. The SPCA said that there were parts of this law that were not clearly defined. What defines a pit bull-type dogs? How were these animals supposed to wear muzzles all the time when outside, they need to drink and eat? What defines a 'dangerous' dog? These were all questions asked by SPCA that helped to put a suspension on the ban.
Fast forward to October 5th, the ban was lifted indefinitely.
