Ontario Pit Bull Ban Is Ridiculous

On August 29, 2005, Ontario put into place a ban on all pit bulls making it mandatory to have the dogs on a leash and with a muzzle on in public, and that people could no longer breed or own pit bulls. If society did not follow these instructions, the dog could be put to sleep or the owner of the dog could be fined a great deal of money Ontario's Attorney General, Michael Bryant stated in a recent public statement, “From my perspective, if it looks like a pit bull, and barks and wags its tail like a pit bull, it's a pit bull” (McIndoo, 2). When asked to identify a pit bull when shown several photos of different dogs, he further showed his ignorance and lack of research as he was unable to identify them, yet this is the leader of the pit bull ban in Ontario. How is it fair to ban the 'pit bull' breed when they are not the only dogs that are dangerous? The government is just attempting to fool the public into believing that these innocent dogs are dangerous when it is not true. I believe that the pit bull ban in Ontario must be stopped; making it legal to own and breed these dogs once more.

The pit bull ban must cease, because irresponsible owners are the ones that should be punished for their dogs' actions not an entire breed. To be able to own any kind of dog is a privilege, and owners of pit bulls are acting carelessly and abusing this privilege by using their dogs for fighting and teaching them to be overly aggressive. Brigitte Mann, the President of the Canadian American Pit Bull Terrier Association, stated, “Any dog treated harshly or trained to attack may be aggressive and bite a person or another animal. Any dog can be turned into a dangerous weapon,” “Specific breeds of dogs are not to blame for the irresponsibility and idiocy of their owners” (Cotter, 1). If owners can't raise their dogs in a loving and caring environment, and are being senseless with their dogs, they should not be allowed the opportunity of owning them. This same opinion is shared by Patti Glass, the President of Wayside Waifs, which is a humane society and an animal welfare organization. She declared, “Breed specific bans target an entire phenotype in order to eliminate a handful of animals that have been poorly socialized under irresponsible ownership” (Ljworld.com). Why is the government being so ignorant and punishing all of the good owners with dogs that have never bitten? Many people are angry with this new law, such as Kris McIndoo, who is an experienced dog handler who runs a dog rescue and adoption service called '4 Legged Love'. She remarked, “Breed specific bans fail to target the problem: bad dog owners…Either these owners will continue to own the breeds mentioned in any breed specific ban or will dump the dogs, get a new breed, and continue the cycle” (McIndoo, 2). Bad owners will not stop owning dogs once pit bulls are gone and worse yet, they may even get another breed banned because of their foolishness. By banning the specific breed of pit bulls, the government is displaying negligence to the fact that it is the dog's owners that need to be punished instead of banning a complete breed.

Moreover, the pit bull ban in Ontario should be overturned because it sets a dangerous precedent for the banning of other breeds of dogs. If the government bans one breed of dog, they will find another 'dangerous' dog, and they will use the pit bull ban as an example to ban them as well. Dr. Norma Guy teaches animal behaviour at the Atlantic Veterinary College in Charlottetown, and she said that “If you take away pit bulls, [the government] will move onto another breed” (cbc.ca, 1). It is obvious that by eliminating pit bulls, the government will ban other dog breeds if they feel that they are dangerous, because dogs will continue to bite as it is in their nature. Sonny Allinson, a spokesman Canadian Kennel Club wrote in a letter to Attorney General Michael Bryant and the Ontario Government that, “The Canadian Kennel Club is concerned that a breed ban of any kind may result in an unfair ripple effect endangering any number of recognized breeds of purebred dogs” (Cotter, 2). Thanks to the government, this unfair ripple effect or pattern that Mr. Allinson is talking about may happen if the pit bull ban continues to remain in effect. Sandra Always, the President of the Golden Horseshoe American Pit Bull Terrier Club, and the Vice-President of the Dog Legislation Council of Canada, declared “If you ban these [dogs], what's next? Italy started with a banned list of 13 breeds. They're up to 40 now. They just banned Welsh Corgis!” (CBC News, 2). Ontario does not want to follow Italy's example of 40 banned breeds of dogs, and other provinces will ban dogs using this ban as an example.