Pit Bull Puppy Going Over the River to Save His Life
March 1 2006.
St. Catharines Standard
Pit bull puppy going over the river to save his life
By PETER DOWNS Standard Staff
It's the canine equivalent of deportation. The Lincoln County Humane Society had to look across the border for a home for a young pit bull born after Ontario's ban on the breed took effect.
The puppy believed to be about 12 weeks old - will be driven to an animal shelter in western New York Thursday where it will be put up for adoption.
“Basically our hands are tied" said Kevin Strooband, manager of the St. Catharines shelter. "We would like to give it back to the owner, which is always best for a dog. We don't have that option this time"
Strooband said humane society staff took the dog into care last week after its owner was arrested by police for a traffic infraction. While the owner was subsequently released by police and wanted his pet back, Strooband said the shelter's hands are tied by the provincial government ban.
“This guy is unfortunately after the ban, so there's no way he can stay in the province” he said.
The first part of the government ban came into effect last August, requiring all pit bulls to be leashed, muzzled and sterilized.
A second phase of the law went into effect at the end of November, making all pit bull puppies born here illegal.Under the ban, all puppies born in Ontario after Nov. 28 must be given to a research centre, shipped out of the province or euthanized.
Strooband said the shelter didn't want to destroy the pup.
“We'd rather never put down a healthy dog” he said.“Sometimes, we're forced to. If you have an adult pit bull, it's difficult enough to find it a home, let alone ship it out of the province.”
But in this pit bull puppy's case, the Erie County SPCA has agreed to take the unnamed dog and try to find him a new owner.
Strooband and an animal control officer are scheduled to take the pooch to the shelter Thursday. Strooband said he's not in favour of the government banning the breed.
“He's paying for the transgressions of his forefathers, so to speak, and he didn't do anything wrong,” he said.
pdowns@stcatharinesstandard.ca
A three-month old pit bull sits in a cage at the Lincoln County Humane Society in west St. Catharines Tuesday.
Staff Photo By Denis Cahill
St. Catharines Standard
Pit bull puppy going over the river to save his life
By PETER DOWNS Standard Staff
It's the canine equivalent of deportation. The Lincoln County Humane Society had to look across the border for a home for a young pit bull born after Ontario's ban on the breed took effect.
The puppy believed to be about 12 weeks old - will be driven to an animal shelter in western New York Thursday where it will be put up for adoption.
“Basically our hands are tied" said Kevin Strooband, manager of the St. Catharines shelter. "We would like to give it back to the owner, which is always best for a dog. We don't have that option this time"
Strooband said humane society staff took the dog into care last week after its owner was arrested by police for a traffic infraction. While the owner was subsequently released by police and wanted his pet back, Strooband said the shelter's hands are tied by the provincial government ban.
“This guy is unfortunately after the ban, so there's no way he can stay in the province” he said.
The first part of the government ban came into effect last August, requiring all pit bulls to be leashed, muzzled and sterilized.
A second phase of the law went into effect at the end of November, making all pit bull puppies born here illegal.Under the ban, all puppies born in Ontario after Nov. 28 must be given to a research centre, shipped out of the province or euthanized.
Strooband said the shelter didn't want to destroy the pup.
“We'd rather never put down a healthy dog” he said.“Sometimes, we're forced to. If you have an adult pit bull, it's difficult enough to find it a home, let alone ship it out of the province.”
But in this pit bull puppy's case, the Erie County SPCA has agreed to take the unnamed dog and try to find him a new owner.
Strooband and an animal control officer are scheduled to take the pooch to the shelter Thursday. Strooband said he's not in favour of the government banning the breed.
“He's paying for the transgressions of his forefathers, so to speak, and he didn't do anything wrong,” he said.
pdowns@stcatharinesstandard.ca
A three-month old pit bull sits in a cage at the Lincoln County Humane Society in west St. Catharines Tuesday.
Staff Photo By Denis Cahill
posted by pitbulljungle at 7:39 AM
1 Comments:
Thank God that their are humane, compassionate people with big hearts to help an innocent puppy, no matter what breed it may be.
Our law is so STUPID that it would send this little follow to a research lab or to his death all because of the breed he is. I'm glad sending him out of province is another option and that people would take the stand to make sure he arrives safely.
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