Man fights for right to keep his dog
A Châteauguay resident has been forced to put his dog in hiding after he claims a police officer threatened last month to come to his house and remove the dog to be euthanized.
Hugh McGurnaghan was out with his family and Murphy, a 10-year-old American Staffordshire Terrier, in early July when he says a police officer intercepted him and warned him that he had seven days to remove Murphy from the city or the officers would go to McGurnaghan’s home and take the dog to be euthanized.
Murphy’s breed is one of several banned in Châteauguay under a municipal bylaw, but McGurnaghan says he has never had a problem from the city despite the dog being registered with the municipality for 10 years. He said he only learned of the bylaw six months after buying Murphy.
“It was definitely a traumatic encounter,” McGurnaghan said of his interaction with the police officer, adding he is planning to file a formal complaint against the officer. “I had my 12-year-old stepdaughter with me who he was very insensitive to.”
When the officer, this time with his partner, visited McGurnaghan’s home after the initial contact, the dog owner decided to put Murphy in hiding with a former girlfriend in LaSalle.
During the visit to the house, the officers handed McGurnaghan three tickets, each for $168. One was for having an American Staffordshire Terrier, one for having Murphy off his leash and one for insulting a police officer after McGurnaghan called his statements “bulls---.”
McGurnaghan says Murphy is a part of his family and has never been aggressive toward anyone, adding that the dog is stressed by being away from home.
“I refused to hide my dog because that makes an unsocialized dog and now you have a problem. In reality, this law is forcing people to hide their dogs and that makes it worse,” McGurnaghan said. “What they are really afraid of by making this law comes true because then you have unsocialized dogs and then there’s a problem and you are blaming everybody.”
SPCA Montreal has been trying to educate politicians about its belief that legislation banning specific breeds is ineffective.
“Research shows that bylaws such as these do not lower bite rates, nor do they make our communities a safer place to live. They also fail to address the issue of dog aggression and bite safety in a comprehensive manner, which are directly related to the manner in which dog guardians care for their dogs,” Montreal SPCA director Alanna Devine said in a statement on its website. Breed specific legislation “also punishes responsible dog guardians because it is based on the false premise that even well-behaved dogs from certain breeds (or with certain physical characteristics) … are inherently ‘dangerous.’’
The SPCA says its position is supported by veterinary orders (including the Quebec veterinary order and the Quebec veterinary association), behaviour experts, and the rest of the animal welfare community.
Châteauguay resident Susan Mackasey, who runs the Petits Pawz pet refuge, was alerted to Murphy’s case through social media and immediately took up the cause.
She launched an online petition and is planning a rally outside city hall on Aug. 17. She’s hoping to convince city officials to repeal the law, which she calls barbaric.
“This wasn’t something I was looking for, I just felt it was really wrong and took it from there,” she said, adding that she would like to see the law overturned. “Studies in Ontario have shown that bite levels are about the same whether you have these breed bans or not because it’s not the breed, it’s the behaviour of the dog and the responsible behaviour of the owners. I like to say it’s what’s on the other end of the leash.”
Mackasey has lived in Châteauguay for three years and hadn’t been aware of the ban before this case.
While she would like the bylaw to be removed, Mackasey says it should be replaced with a law that places more responsibility on the owners, including a requirement to always have a dog on a leash. She also says all dogs should be sterilized because they are more aggressive when they aren’t.
“This dog is being … targeted because of its breed. It’s like judging someone because of their colour. It’s not fair. It doesn’t mean this dog is a bad dog because it’s a pit bull.”
McGurnaghan and Mackasey have both reached out to city officials in the hope of being granted a derogation to allow Murphy to return home, but none has so far been granted by Daniel Carrier, the city’s director general.
Attempts by the Montreal Gazette to reach Carrier, as well as Mayor Nathalie Simon, were met with a response saying they were on vacation. An assistant would only say that city council is aware of the situation and that it would review the bylaw at the end of August.
After a series of emails with Jean Lizotte, an adviser to the mayor, McGurnaghan says he was told Murphy could come home thanks to a gentleman’s agreement between Carrier, Châteauguay police director Stéphane Fleury and Simon.
McGurnaghan remains skeptical of that, however, and has kept Murphy in hiding for the most part.
Research shows that bylaws such as these do not lower bite rates, nor do they make our communities a safer place to live.