The debate on the subject erupted this week after the consequences of a dog that bit the face of a teenager
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Some Ontario dog owners are digging.
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A group of pet lovers are disappointed that the Ford government has no plans to lift the provincial ban on pit bulls enacted by liberals in 2005.
But they swear they won’t give up.
“We have not left. We will not leave. We’re not leaving, ”said Candida Beauchamp, Ontario director of the Staffordshire Bull Terrier Club of Canada.
“I have been fighting race-specific legislation since before it became provincial law.”
Your club is part of a coalition that wants the Dog Owner Responsibility Act to be abolished.
The ban has been in effect since 2005 when the Liberals amended the law.
The problem came to a head this week after a 13-year-old boy was bitten on the left side of the face at the end of a taekwondo class on November 5 at Black Belt World on Bloor St. W.
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Muhammad Alzghool told the Sun this week that he was having nightmares about the incident, which police are investigating.
The dog that bit Alzghool had just spent 24 days in custody at Vaughan Animal Services waiting for a DNA test to prove it was not a pit bull.
Muhammad’s father, Muath Alzghool, wants something done with the dog, and he wants rules about when one can be in a setting like a children’s martial arts class.
Prime Minister Doug Ford said Wednesday there are no plans to change the legislation.
“First of all, my thoughts are with the boy who was bitten and his family,” Ford said. “Nothing is going to change right now, but our thoughts are with the family.”
On November 1, the government amended regulations that included making it easier for a dog owner to release their pet from custody under certain circumstances.
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For some dog owners who held a rally at Queen’s Park in October, it’s a band-aid solution.
“Ontario is the only province in Canada and the largest jurisdiction in North America that has breed-specific legislation,” Beauchamp said.
“It is something that is totally wrong. Most of the problems are due to poor ownership. “
Another group called End The Ban is lobbying members to petition MPPs to get rid of the current law.
“Studies conducted over the past 20 years on breed-specific legislation have shown that breed bans are not effective in reducing general dog bites or dog-related incidents,” the group said in a statement.
A bill proposed for a private member in September 2019 of now-independent MPP Rick Nicholls that would dilute regulations in banning pit bulls died when the legislature was extended due to the pandemic.
Reference-torontosun.com