Canada & BSL - Important
Permission to Crosspost
**PLEASE READ - THIS COULD EFFECT YOU IF YOU HAVE A DOG AND ARE
TRAVELING THROUGH ONTARIO, CANADA**
TOURIST ALERT!
You have no doubt seen the warnings posted on credible websites in the UK, the US and in other areas of Canada against traveling to or through Ontario with your dog. This is good advice.
If your dog is one of the registered breeds described in Ontario's amended Dog Owners' Liability Act, or if, as stated in the Act, your dog bears a resemblance to any of those breeds, you may end up going home with fewer friends or family members than you had when you arrived.
Here are the prohibited breeds:
American Pit Bull terrier
American Staffordshire terrier
Staffordshire Bull terrier
Here are some of the breeds which, if unregistered or if mixed, could be (and have been) considered 'pit bulls' by the authorities in Ontario. If your dog has a short coat, boxy head and is a certain colour, he or she could be in real trouble in Ontario.
Boxer
Boston terrier
Bull terrier
Plott Hound
Great Dane
Bullmastiff
Mastiff
Labrador retriever
Chesapeake Bay retriever
French Bulldog
Patterdale terrier
Vizsla
Rhodesian Ridgeback
Dogue de Bordeaux
Cane Corso
Dogo Argentino
Fila Brasileiro
Australian Cattle Dog
If you are traveling from Manitoba on your way to Quebec or the Maritimes, for example, you are STRONGLY ADVISED TO BYPASS ONTARIO BY DRIVING AROUND THE BEND THROUGH THE US for that portion of your trip. Should you find yourself accidentally inside Ontario's border on your trip, you are STRONGLY ADVISED TO KEEP YOUR DOG OUT OF SIGHT, TURN AROUND AND HIGHTAIL IT DOWN TO THE STATES IMMEDIATELY.
We are not making this up. Here is the text, verbatim, of a letter received from Ontario's Minister of Tourism, Jim Bradley.
Ministry of Tourism and Recreation
Minister
9th Floor, Hearst Block
900 Bay Street
Toronto, ON M7A 2E1
Tel: (416) 326-9326
Fax: (416) 326-9338
M2005-5790
April 7, 2005
Dear :
Thank you for your e-mail messages about the Ontario government's new legislation banning pit bulls. I appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns, and I apologize for the delay in responding to you.
Ontario's Public Safety Related to Dogs Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005 became law on March 9, 2005, and it amends the Dog Owners' Liability Act. The new legislation will come into effect on August 29, 2005, banning pit bulls and their importation into Ontario. The new law also places restrictions on existing pit bulls and toughens penalties for the owners of any dog that poses a danger to the public. Pit bulls already legally resident in the province before the date the law comes into force may remain legally in Ontario, subject to certain conditions, such as compliance with leash, muzzle and sterilization requirements. Accordingly, law-abiding owners of existing pit bulls in Ontario need not give up their dogs.
Importing pit bulls into Ontario will be prohibited after August 29, 2005. Pit bulls not legally resident in Ontario prior to this date will be subject to seizure, and persons found to have imported a pit bull into Ontario will be in violation of the law and may be subject to fines and/or jail. There are no exceptions for tourists, including those simply passing through Ontario with their pit bulls, apart from a limited exception for individuals participating in a recognized dog show. You can find further information about the legislation on the Ministry of the Attorney General's website at: www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca.
Ontario greatly values its visitors from Canada, the United States and abroad. We are proud of the many world-class tourism attractions and experiences in Ontario, and we are working hard to provide a safe and welcoming province for visitors and residents alike. For more information on travelling in Ontario, please visit www.ontariotravel.net, or call toll free 1-800-Ontario (1-800-668-2746).
Again, thank you for advising me of your concerns, which I will share with my Cabinet colleague, the Honourable Michael Bryant, Attorney General of Ontario.
Yours sincerely,
Jim Bradley
Minister
Sounds to us as though they value their visitors as much as they value their citizens, ie, not at all.
SO, BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY, FOLKS. DO NOT TRAVEL THROUGH ONTARI-SCARI-ARI-O WITH YOUR BELOVED BEST FRIEND.
IT'S JUST NOT WORTH IT.
Remember, the onus is on the owner of the dog to prove it is not a 'pit bull'. If convicted of an offense under the new DOLA, owners are liable for fines of up to $10,000 and a jail term of up to Six Months.
The only options for a convicted 'pit bull' are death or consignment to a research facility.
We hope owners of other breeds will show solidarity with their fellow dog owners and avoid travel in Ontario until this law is overturned. Remember, a municipality may add any breed or mixed breed they wish to their bylaws and may also add harsher penalities and restrictions than those in the provincial law.
Lesley Sailor
Elizabeth Brinkley. MFA in Theatre
Dante Kennels, est. 1974
Latrobe, PA
http://www.dantekennels.com
Permission to Crosspost
**PLEASE READ - THIS COULD EFFECT YOU IF YOU HAVE A DOG AND ARE
TRAVELING THROUGH ONTARIO, CANADA**
TOURIST ALERT!
You have no doubt seen the warnings posted on credible websites in the UK, the US and in other areas of Canada against traveling to or through Ontario with your dog. This is good advice.
If your dog is one of the registered breeds described in Ontario's amended Dog Owners' Liability Act, or if, as stated in the Act, your dog bears a resemblance to any of those breeds, you may end up going home with fewer friends or family members than you had when you arrived.
Here are the prohibited breeds:
American Pit Bull terrier
American Staffordshire terrier
Staffordshire Bull terrier
Here are some of the breeds which, if unregistered or if mixed, could be (and have been) considered 'pit bulls' by the authorities in Ontario. If your dog has a short coat, boxy head and is a certain colour, he or she could be in real trouble in Ontario.
Boxer
Boston terrier
Bull terrier
Plott Hound
Great Dane
Bullmastiff
Mastiff
Labrador retriever
Chesapeake Bay retriever
French Bulldog
Patterdale terrier
Vizsla
Rhodesian Ridgeback
Dogue de Bordeaux
Cane Corso
Dogo Argentino
Fila Brasileiro
Australian Cattle Dog
If you are traveling from Manitoba on your way to Quebec or the Maritimes, for example, you are STRONGLY ADVISED TO BYPASS ONTARIO BY DRIVING AROUND THE BEND THROUGH THE US for that portion of your trip. Should you find yourself accidentally inside Ontario's border on your trip, you are STRONGLY ADVISED TO KEEP YOUR DOG OUT OF SIGHT, TURN AROUND AND HIGHTAIL IT DOWN TO THE STATES IMMEDIATELY.
We are not making this up. Here is the text, verbatim, of a letter received from Ontario's Minister of Tourism, Jim Bradley.
Ministry of Tourism and Recreation
Minister
9th Floor, Hearst Block
900 Bay Street
Toronto, ON M7A 2E1
Tel: (416) 326-9326
Fax: (416) 326-9338
M2005-5790
April 7, 2005
Dear :
Thank you for your e-mail messages about the Ontario government's new legislation banning pit bulls. I appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns, and I apologize for the delay in responding to you.
Ontario's Public Safety Related to Dogs Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005 became law on March 9, 2005, and it amends the Dog Owners' Liability Act. The new legislation will come into effect on August 29, 2005, banning pit bulls and their importation into Ontario. The new law also places restrictions on existing pit bulls and toughens penalties for the owners of any dog that poses a danger to the public. Pit bulls already legally resident in the province before the date the law comes into force may remain legally in Ontario, subject to certain conditions, such as compliance with leash, muzzle and sterilization requirements. Accordingly, law-abiding owners of existing pit bulls in Ontario need not give up their dogs.
Importing pit bulls into Ontario will be prohibited after August 29, 2005. Pit bulls not legally resident in Ontario prior to this date will be subject to seizure, and persons found to have imported a pit bull into Ontario will be in violation of the law and may be subject to fines and/or jail. There are no exceptions for tourists, including those simply passing through Ontario with their pit bulls, apart from a limited exception for individuals participating in a recognized dog show. You can find further information about the legislation on the Ministry of the Attorney General's website at: www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca.
Ontario greatly values its visitors from Canada, the United States and abroad. We are proud of the many world-class tourism attractions and experiences in Ontario, and we are working hard to provide a safe and welcoming province for visitors and residents alike. For more information on travelling in Ontario, please visit www.ontariotravel.net, or call toll free 1-800-Ontario (1-800-668-2746).
Again, thank you for advising me of your concerns, which I will share with my Cabinet colleague, the Honourable Michael Bryant, Attorney General of Ontario.
Yours sincerely,
Jim Bradley
Minister
Sounds to us as though they value their visitors as much as they value their citizens, ie, not at all.
SO, BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY, FOLKS. DO NOT TRAVEL THROUGH ONTARI-SCARI-ARI-O WITH YOUR BELOVED BEST FRIEND.
IT'S JUST NOT WORTH IT.
Remember, the onus is on the owner of the dog to prove it is not a 'pit bull'. If convicted of an offense under the new DOLA, owners are liable for fines of up to $10,000 and a jail term of up to Six Months.
The only options for a convicted 'pit bull' are death or consignment to a research facility.
We hope owners of other breeds will show solidarity with their fellow dog owners and avoid travel in Ontario until this law is overturned. Remember, a municipality may add any breed or mixed breed they wish to their bylaws and may also add harsher penalities and restrictions than those in the provincial law.
Lesley Sailor
Elizabeth Brinkley. MFA in Theatre
Dante Kennels, est. 1974
Latrobe, PA
http://www.dantekennels.com
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