Pit bull ban in the works in Quebec

Pit bull dogs are in the spotlight in Quebec following the death of a Montreal woman last week. Christianne Vadnais, 55, was found dead in her back yard after an attack by the neighbour’s pitbull dog, according to a witness who found her.

Serge Vadnais, her brother, says the only way to prevent another death like it, is to ban the breed.

“We will work … to push the government to change the law,” he said. “As soon as possible, not in two years, now. We will change the law to limit the pit bull in Quebec, the same as in Ontario.”  he told CBC news.

There are now growing demands for a province-wide ban of the breed many consider dangerous. The neighboring province of Ontario instituted a province-wide ban on pit bulls in 2005. People who had the dogs prior to that were allowed to keep them.

Montreal and the province of Quebec currently have a variety of regulations concerning dog ownership.

“Owners need to be held responsible. There should be stricter fines, a lot of enforcement,”

Brossard, a community across the St. Lawrence River from Montreal, is the latest place to announce a ban on pitbull dogs. The announcement today was in the wake of an attack on a little girl in a park there last year.

Many people argue, however, the problem is not with pit bull dogs, but the owners who have them. And there is a heated debate about whether breed bans work. The compromise in some places has been the mandatory muzzling of breeds deemed “dangerous” whenever out in public.

John Truss is the owner of 5 pitbull dogs. He told CBC radio this morning that he understands the problem with so-called dangerous dogs. But he sees a bigger problem with a ban.

“How do we determine if it’s a pit bull,” he asked. “Pit bull mixes covers a huge part of the dog population.” He says strict regulations, licensing and fines are the answer. “Owners need to be held responsible. There should be stricter fines, a lot of enforcement,” according to Truss.

He revealed that he got his first pitbull as a twenty-year old in need of the status symbol, But he says he soon developed a deep respect for the dog.

“Once I realized what incredible dogs they are, I started training them, taking them in public, making sure they’re normal. I realized they’re just dogs,” he told CBC radio host, Mike Finnerty.

“They’re just as capable of being good family pets as any dog,” Truss said.

Now the father of a 17-month old, he never leaves his child alone with the dogs, but that’s more on principle — not because they’re pit bulls, he said.

Meanwhile, Quebec Agriculture Minister Pierre Paradis says the government is examining the possibility of following Ontario’s example and adopting a province-wide ban on pit bulls.

Paradis told reporters today,  “there’s a sense of urgency” among provincial officials meeting, to figure out how to deal with the problem.