tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51032506812493891342024-03-08T11:08:42.962-08:00Calgary Pit Bull AttacksTracking pit bull attacks in the land of Bill Bruce.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-66694920127216506682011-07-31T21:15:00.000-07:002011-07-31T22:10:30.928-07:00Importing pits from Ontario (like we need more)Calgary is one of a number of destinations for pit bulls that are slated to be destroyed in Ontario. We are assured that <a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/2011/07/31/calgarians-help-rescue-banned-ont-pit-bulls">THESE</a> pits are not dangerous. <a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/2011/07/31/calgarians-help-rescue-banned-ont-pit-bulls">THESE</a> pits have been fully temperament tested and will make wonderful pets. Yet, most of these pits are under 2 years of age and anyone who knows anything about pit bulls knows that their aggression doesn't usually manifest until 2 years of age. Which means that a proper temperament test could not be conducted on a pit bull less than 2 years old. Which is irrelevant because no one conducts proper temperament tests on pit bulls anyway - pits are never tested under stress for animal aggression or aggression towards children or the elderly. <br />
<br />
Recently, you-know-who <a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/news/columnists/michael_platt/2011/01/05/16763991.html">contemplated the fact that pit bulls are now leading the bite count in Calgary</a> and proclaimed that it must simply be lack of training and socialization on the part of Calgary's dog owners. Lack of training? He first says their is nothing breed specific at work, yet he intimates that it is simply a lack of training that is responsible for the very breed-specific increase in serious bites by pit bulls and pit bull mixes in Calgary. Obviously failing to train your Labrador has nothing to do with serious bites by pit bulls, so it is equally obvious - to us AND to him - that this increase in serious attacks by pit bulls is a very <strong>breed-specific</strong> phenomenon. <br />
<br />
So, obviously we have a problem specifically with pit bulls not being trained by pit bull owners. In the mind of those who don't support BSL, pit bull owners are therefore, for some reason, less responsible than other breeds' owners (remember that if you don't accept that it is the owners then you have to accept that it is the breed). So, if the people that own pit bulls are so much less responsible than the people that own Labs that they have made their dogs 32 times more likely to seriously injure someone, why the hell are we importing dogs for them? It is completely senseless.<br />
<br />
Yet, you-know-who would have us believe that he simply cannot seem to make the connection between<a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/news/columnists/michael_platt/2011/01/05/16763991.html"> THAT</a> and <a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/2011/07/31/calgarians-help-rescue-banned-ont-pit-bulls">THIS</a>? I know that he really isn't that stupid. I am continually amazed at just how disingenuous he is.<br />
<br />
I strongly believe that, with the number of pits our city has imported and produced in the last 2 years, someone is going to die because of his relentless, ridiculous, misanthropic pursuit of the adoration (and reward) of the pit parade. I believe that it is very likely that Calgary will have its first, very <strong>breed-specific </strong>fatality by the end of this year.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-53306630915648986402011-06-08T11:49:00.000-07:002011-06-08T11:49:11.074-07:00The "All in the Owner" fallacyI was originally going to put this in the comments as a response, but I am so sick of hearing this garbage that I thought I would address it in a post instead. Someone answered a story posted in the comments about a pit bull suddenly, and without provocation, attacking a child it had been raised with in her bed because it was aroused by the squeak of a stuffed toy by saying that "all breeds do this and it is only a matter of how you raise them".<br />
<br />
What a load of garbage. You could tie my loving retriever cross under a porch for 7 years and beat her with a board 3 times a day, and I could <strong>NEVER</strong> make her harm a child. She came out of a scenario not much different than that before she was rescued, yet she doesn't have an ounce of aggression toward anyone or anything, no matter how many unfamiliar squeaks she is peppered with. This nonsense is an affront to every wonderful dog that was ever neglected and abused and then rescued and loved and <strong>TRUSTED</strong>. Most normal dogs would <strong>NEVER</strong> intentionally harm the people they live with. A dog snapping at someone to convey a message is a far cry from a pit bull latching on to an arm and beginning the shake and hold, with the full intention of killing the victim. Normal dogs <strong>DO NOT</strong> attempt to kill their social partners, no matter <strong>HOW</strong> they are raised. <br />
<br />
If irresponsible pet ownership is "where the problem lies" then we should see serious attacks and maulings in numbers that<strong> EXACTLY</strong> reflect the breed numbers in a given area. Irresponsible ownership is not breed specific so if a given area has 70% sporting breeds (which is typical), then sporting breeds should be responsible for 70% of the severe and fatal attacks. This is <strong>NOT</strong> the case, anywhere. Serious attacks are never proportional to breed numbers, they are always biased toward fighting breeds.<br />
<br />
In Calgary, by Bill Bruce's <a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/news/columnists/michael_platt/2011/01/05/16763991.html">own admission and documentation</a>, pit bulls lead the serious bite count with 13% of the city's serious bites attributable to pit bulls, yet pit bulls account for less than 1% of the city's dogs. In fact, pit bulls are responsible for nearly as many serious bites (13%) as the <strong>ENTIRE</strong> sporting breeding category (15%), which includes all of the most popular breeds (Labs, Goldens, Poodles, Spaniels, etc) and houses 70% of Calgary's dogs. Why aren't these breeds attacking in the face of irresponsible ownership?<br />
<br />
What a crock. <strong>It IS the breed</strong>. Sometimes the owner contributes, and let's face it, human garbage likes to own a pit bull, but it is the breed that is the problem. When you breed dogs to override every social instinct and attempt to fatally injure social partners you get dogs that are genetically dangerous. It isn't rocket science. And Calgary, at the mercy of Bruce and his influx of pit bulls, will learn that lesson in the coming years.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-76722643367330595512011-05-18T16:21:00.000-07:002011-05-18T16:21:43.128-07:00And the pit distribution begins...<a href="http://www.calgaryherald.com/life/Seized+bull+finds+home+dozens+more+adoption/4804870/story.html">05. 18. 11.</a> And on the heels of yet another unexpected and unprovoked attack involving a Calgary pit bull comes the first of the "adoptions" of the 34 pit bulls seized from a breeding operation (that 34 doesn't include all of the puppies which will be up for "adoption" once they are born). Desiree Arsenault of the Calgary Humane Society explains that they are very magnanimously planning to release the pits a few at a time to avoid compromising adoptions of other breeds. Huh? It doesn't matter how slowly you adopt them out, Desiree, there will still be 58 (remember the puppies) pit bulls bumping 58 normal dogs from homes. <br />
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CHS assures us these dogs have all been "temperament tested" and have all passed with "flying colors". How do you accurately assess the temperament of a fighting dog that hasn't yet reached maturity, Desiree? Were they extensively tested with other dogs in provocative situations? Doubt it. Were they extensively tested with cats in provocative situations? Doubt it. Farm animals? Children? Probably not at all and not at all.<br />
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I am going to add a new prediction - we will soon see a violent incident involving one of these pit bulls. BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-87726889619922758462011-05-18T10:22:00.000-07:002011-05-18T10:22:03.944-07:00Do you think this pit bull will like the new baby?<a href="http://www.calgaryherald.com/life/Calgary+police+stun+bull/4793969/story.html">05. 17. 11.</a> A pit bull bolted through an open door to attack a Husky cross being walked on-leash across the street. The pit's pregnant owner tried to pry her dog off the Husky, but was bitten by her own dog Police responded and had to taser the pit bull 3 times to pry it from the Husky. The pit bull advocates are, of course, trying to tell us that these kinds of incidents happen every day with other breeds in Calgary. What do you think? Was there a Tervuren tased on Tuesday and a Scottie stunned on Sunday that we didn't hear about? <br />
<br />
And will this gentle pit bull like the new baby when it arrives? I'm confident that Bill will release it so that we can find out.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-29248204005562766672011-05-02T09:13:00.000-07:002011-05-08T00:39:17.021-07:00This might squeeze the resources at the Calgary Humane Society<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/story/2011/05/06/calgary-dogs-full-humane-society.html">05. 07. 11</a> As predicted, there is no room at the inn if you are a Shih Tzu or a Doberman. Dump your Dandy Dinmonts and kick your Kuvasz to the curb, people, the Calgary Humane Society is full...of pit bulls. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.calgaryherald.com/life/dehydrated+bulls+seized+from+Calgary+home/4710136/story.html">05. 02. 11.</a> 34 pit bulls were just seized, dehydrated and neglected, from a Calgary breeding operation, several were pregnant. 34 pit bulls will now require care and assessment (behavioural as well as physical, one can only hope) from the Humane Society. Assuming only 3 of the dogs were pregnant and assuming a very modest litter size of 8 puppies each, 58 pit bulls will be added to the already-problematic Calgary pit bull population.<br />
<br />
Thanks for making this kind of pit breeding scum feel so welcome in Calgary, Bill.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-74208577063985238022011-04-25T01:44:00.000-07:002011-04-29T12:50:21.647-07:00Another child, another pit bull.Video of Peaches behaviour (clearly, this is an aggressive and unstable dog) and her owner (just what I expected) available <a href="http://www.globalregina.com/Charges+laid+pitbull+attack/4678296/story.html">here</a>. Calgary's Liontamers are going to rehab Peaches and send her home.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110426/CGY_dogbite_bylaw_110426/20110426/?hub=CalgaryHome">Update:</a> Looks like this pit will be returned to the owner to maul another day. "Peaches" might have to wear a muzzle for a year, but I'm <em>sure</em> her owner - clearly a responsible, upstanding citizen (can you see Peaches abdomen in that picture? Looks like she has already had at least one litter) - will abide by the new rules...don't you think? Seriously, can you imagine the stupidity of an AC department that would release a dog that had to be beaten off a child by more than one person and continued its attack on the child even while under attack by several adults itself? I am going to make a prediction that Calgary is going to have a pit fatality this year. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/2011/04/25/dog-attacks-young-girl-in-northeast">04. 24. 11.</a> Four year-old Haley Khidri is the latest victim of Calgary's generous dog bylaws. At around 7 pm Haley was attacked in her own yard by a loose, unlicensed (but Bruce, I thought ALL pits were licensed in Calgary??) "tan-colored" pit bull. Neighbours rushed to her aid, but the pit bull would not relent and the child had to be first placed on top of a car, then rushed into a house while neighbours tried to distract the pit bull by beating it with brooms and sticks. The pit bull followed the child into the house (have you EVER heard of another breed doing this? Can you imagine a Lab being this relentlessly focused on killing a child? A Collie? A Shepherd?) so the neighbours had to resume their beating of the dog. If this had happened on a day when the neighbours had been working and not available to repeatedly beat the dog off the child, the child would be dead. Does a child have to die in Calgary before something is done about the growing pit bull problem here? Man up Bill, you know this isn't working.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-34010922847451445412011-01-12T12:04:00.000-08:002011-01-12T12:04:26.114-08:00Pit attacks are on the rise with pit numbers???? Shocking...from the Calgary Sun, January 4th 2010<br />
<br />
Last month, it was a woman whose face was torn open by the family Rottweiler.<br />
In August, three members of the same family were sent for stitches after their Staffordshire terrier intervened in a domestic dispute.<br />
On May 22, a seven-year-old boy visiting friends was mauled by a startled 70-kg English mastiff after the animal was bumped by a door.<br />
Last year was a bloody one for dog bites in Calgary, and while the hand that feeds sometimes gets the teeth, the victims are increasingly family and friends of the dog owner.<br />
“It’s a cause for alarm — the most disturbing aspect is the rise of bites happening in the home and with immediate neighbours,” said Bill Bruce, Calgary’s chief Animal Services officer.<br />
“We’ve had some really bad ones this year. We had one just before Christmas where a rotti grabbed a lady’s face — she was the wife. It was ugly.”<br />
While aggressive incidents involving dogs remain virtually the same — 159 in 2009, as compared to 158 in 2010 — the number of actual bites recorded by Calgary Animal Services has jumped from 58 to 102.<br />
Of those 102 puncture-wound victims, 54 were strangers, 34 were neighbours and friends, eight were immediate family and six were service providers like postal workers.<br />
Even more frightening is the age of the bitten: 20 of the victims were children aged nine and under.<br />
Bruce suspects the rise in bites from trusted dogs is a matter of poorly trained people — those who don’t recognize early signs of aggression and who fail to properly socialize and handle their pets.<br />
“These behaviours don’t just pop up, and there are always indicators before an attack, and if they’re not checked or corrected it will escalate,” said Bruce. “Any dog can and will bite — it’s not about size and breed, it’s about people doing the right thing with their dogs.”<br />
If children, friends and family feeling the wrath of rotten ownership is a scary trend, Bruce is also disturbed by the breeds doing the biting.<br />
After years with Labrador retrievers at the top of Calgary’s most-likely to bite list, pitbull and pitbull-type terriers have suddenly taken a dubious lead, passing both shepherds and retrievers.<br />
Bruce is concerned to see pitbulls as champions of the chomp because the knee-jerk reaction is usually the call for a breed ban — a tactic he declares a total failure wherever it’s been tried.<br />
“You ban one breed and people just get another dog that’s got the same issues,” said Bruce. “Breed legislation doesn’t work because it’s not a dog problem, it’s a people problem and it’s getting owners to understand the need to properly train and socialize their dog.”<br />
Last year, the Toronto Humane Society released statistics showing no significant drop in dog bites since a breed ban became law in 2005. <br />
And Italy repealed a ban on 17 supposedly dangerous dogs breeds, including Rottweilers and pitbulls after evidence showed restrictions don’t work.<br />
Instead, Italy will focus on new laws holding owners accountable for their dogs — including proper training.<br />
Animal Services officials in Calgary, which still boasts the lowest bite-per-population ratio in North America, say enforced training may also help solve the current rash of bites in this city.<br />
Bruce says he is preparing to take the matter to city council where he will ask that less severe dog incidents such as chasing and nipping be subject to enforced training.<br />
Instead of a stand-alone fine for aggressive animals, owners will also be required to complete a training course on canine handling and behaviour. “It’s an opportunity to turn that dog’s behaviour around with the help of a professional trainer,” said Bruce.<br />
At the same time, Animal Services may seek to increase the aggressive-pet penalty for dogs trained to be surly, whether as a guard dog or status symbol.<br />
Bruce says better owners should mean fewer bites for Calgary. “There is absolutely no reason for dogs under the proper care of an owner to bite somebody,” he said.<br />
• • •<br />
<b>TEETHING - Bited by breed group, 2010</b><br />
1. Terriers (pitbulls account for half of total terrier bites) - 26 bites<br />
2. Working dogs (includes Rottweilers and mastiffs) - 22 bites<br />
3. Herding dogs (includes shepherds) - 17 bites<br />
4. Sporting dogs (includes retrievers) - 16 bites<br />
5. Non-sporting - 14 bites<br />
6. Toys - 5 bites<br />
7. Hounds - 2 bitesBBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-78060450998842385332011-01-08T01:51:00.000-08:002011-04-25T01:54:28.388-07:00Ginger...finally<a href="http://www.thestar.com/news/article/885767--ginger-back-on-death-row">This</a> is the story of Ginger according to the Star. Bill Bruce is attempting to bring Ginger to Calgary to adopt her out:<br />
<div class="s15"></div><h2><span id="ctl00_ctl00_bcr_bcr_News_BodyLabel"><br />
--------------------------<br />
<br />
This is the story of Ginger according to the published court documents pertaining to the original "scuffle" which got her slated for euthanasia:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.canlii.org/eliisa/highlight.do?text=ginger+buddy+pit+bull+huggins&language=en&searchTitle=Search+all+CanLII+Databases&path=/en/on/oncj/doc/2007/2007oncj306/2007oncj306.html">http://www.canlii.org/eliisa/highlight.do?text=ginger+buddy+pit+bull+huggins&language=en&searchTitle=Search+all+CanLII+Databases&path=/en/on/oncj/doc/2007/2007oncj306/2007oncj306.html</a><br />
<br />
Some highlights:<br />
<br />
"I concluded that the defendant’s dog “<span class="term0 lmrp" id="g52-0">Ginger</span>’ had in fact been responsible for initiating the attack on “<span class="term1 lmrp" id="g53-0">Buddy</span>” and for repeatedly biting Jody MacDonald and her dog. The repeated biting of “<span class="term1 lmrp" id="g54-0">Buddy</span> was sufficient to inflict serious wounds which were described by Jody MacDonald in her testimony. Further, this attack was made possible by the failure of Bernadette Razac to keep <span class="term0 lmrp" id="g55-0">Ginger</span> leashed and muzzled on the date in question."<br />
<br />
"I hereby confirm and incorporate my findings of credibility and fact which appear elsewhere in this judgment. In particular, I have found that <span class="term0 lmrp" id="g150-0">Ginger</span> attacked and repeatedly bit both <span class="term1 lmrp" id="g151-0">Buddy</span> and his owner, Jody MacDonald."<br />
<br />
"My finding was that <span class="term0 lmrp" id="g196-0">Ginger</span> was <u>not</u> leashed and <u>not</u> muzzled on November 29, 2005. Further, I found that Ms. Razac’s failure to follow her son’s instructions had facilitated this attack on <span class="term1 lmrp" id="g197-0">Buddy</span>. Had <span class="term0 lmrp" id="g198-0">Ginger</span> been properly muzzled on the date in question, <span class="term0 lmrp" id="g199-0">Ginger</span> may still have been able to start the dog-fight. However, the muzzle would have prevented her from repeatedly biting and seriously injuring <span class="term1 lmrp" id="g200-0">Buddy</span>."<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
</span></h2>BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-45222664423840181362010-11-04T23:31:00.000-07:002010-11-04T23:31:30.403-07:00What? Fighting dogs being used for - gasp - FIGHTING?!<div style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><div class="wrapper_0_20_0_0"><div id="storyheader"><div class="headline"><h1>Online ads point to dogfighting rings in Calgary area</h1></div><div class="clear"> </div><div class="subheadline"><h2></h2></div><div class="clear"> </div><div class="byline"><span class="name">By Deborah Tetley, Postmedia News</span> <span class="timestamp">November 5, 2010 12:03 AM</span> <span class="comments" id="lblComment"></span></div><div class="clear"> </div></div><script type="text/javascript">
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</script><div class="para14" id="story_content"><div class="col_480"><div class="col_460"><div class="para18" id="storycontent"><div id="page1">CALGARY — A spike in online ads for “bully” dogs described as fearless aggressive monsters, coupled with canines turning up with strange scars and missing ears, has animal welfare officials fearing underground dogfighting rings are popping up in the Calgary area.<br />
In the past six months the Calgary Humane Society has seen at least three large breed dogs surrendered to the shelter with unexplained injuries, including a pit bull with a massive cut to her face and such serious injuries to one eye that it had to be removed.<br />
“They have scratches and bites and scrapes and they come in looking a little rough,” Desiree Arsenault, a spokeswoman for the humane society said Thursday. “At the very least they’ve been in a dogfight and it’s possible they have been involved in illegal dogfighting.”<br />
While no dogfighting rings have been discovered within the city, Calgary’s bylaw boss says he’s received several tips in the past six months there is one operating on the southern edge of the city.<br />
If that’s the case it won’t be long before the underground rings — where dogs fight other dogs for “sport” in front of spectators, pop up in other locations, said Bill Bruce, director of animal and bylaw services.<br />
“We need to get on this because it’s only a matter of time before they try to set up a ring for their filthy activities here in the city,” he said.<br />
Arsenault and Bruce say the proliferation of online ads in which Alberta breeders describe the dogs as Xtreme, ferocious, monstrous, aggressive and with champion blood lines is proof that such breeds as pit bulls, mastiffs and a popular guard dog breed called Cane Corso, are being bred to fight.<br />
“Whenever we see an ad advertising how big the dog’s head is, that is fight lingo,” said Bruce. <br />
“The bigger the head the bigger the jaw so the more powerful the dog’s going to be and ultimately be a better fighter.”<br />
The humane society is reportedly working with the local online advertising website Kijiji to scrutinize and remove ads that contain “red flag words.”<br />
<br />
“When there’s a suspicion that we’re dealing with such ads where a poster might be trading a dog for the purpose of fighting, we’re going to take down the ad,” Christian Jasserand, head of the Kijiji’s customer support, told the National Post.<br />
Bruce and Arsenault say it’s also possible that the dogs being bred in Alberta are being shipped to fight in the U.S.<br />
Calgary Herald<br />
dtetley@calgaryherald.com</div></div></div></div></div><br />
<br />
Read more: <a href="http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Online+point+dogfighting+rings+Calgary+area/3780050/story.html#ixzz14O3JO7Xg" style="color: #003399;">http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Online+point+dogfighting+rings+Calgary+area/3780050/story.html#ixzz14O3JO7Xg</a></div>BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-16388475129184117012010-11-01T20:07:00.000-07:002010-11-01T20:07:50.376-07:00Trick or treating with Calgary's favorite dog breed..<h3>Girl bit by pitbull while trick-or-treating</h3><div class="byline">By <span>BILL KAUFMANN, QMI Agency</span></div><div class="updated">Last Updated: November 1, 2010 8:52pm</div><div id="channelContent" sizcache="0" sizset="137"><div id="contentSwap" sizcache="0" sizset="137"><div class="leftBox" sizcache="0" sizset="137"><div class="articleControls thin" sizcache="0" sizset="137"></div></div>CALGARY - Before trick-or-treating 10-year-old Aishlyn Fairweather had a chance to taste any Halloween candy, a neighbour’s pit bull sank its teeth into her.<br />
Dressed as a zombie, Fairweather said she was meeting with friends outside her home on Covehaven Gardens N.E. just before collecting treats when she was attacked by what initially seemed like a phantom pit bull.<br />
“All of a sudden, I feel a hard pain rushing through my hand and up into my arm -- I didn’t know what was happening,” said Fairweather, adding she was on the sidewalk with two other girls near the dog’s home.<br />
“I’m bleeding, I look behind me and there’s a dog...everybody started screaming.”<br />
The girl said the dog bit her twice on the right hand before an off-duty firefighter neighbour scared off the animal.<br />
Her mom, Doris, said the dog has been a problem for neighbours in the past and apparently ran out of an open garage door and attacked.<br />
“It’s a good thing a baby didn’t get bitten -- fortunately, Aishlyn’s a tall girl,” said the mom.<br />
“It’s sad pet owners aren’t more responsible.”<br />
She said the pit bull’s owners grabbed their dog and drove off immediately after the incident without checking on the damage their pet had caused.<br />
Fairweather said when she went to purchase some painkillers for her daughter at a nearby pharmacy, she was surprised to encounter one of the dog’s owners there.<br />
“I said ‘Your dog bit my daughter,’” she said, adding the woman apologized and offered to pay for the medicine.<br />
Aishlyn suffered minor cuts to her hand.<br />
Last year, the girl was sidelined from trick-or-treating by a bout of H1N1 flu and was unable to go to a single door on Sunday, said her mom.<br />
“She was so excited to go out and then this happens,” she said.<br />
Two-year-old pit bull Titan broke through a barrier and lunged toward a reporter who’d just been allowed into its owner’s home on Monday.<br />
But a couple who share the house with Titan -- who didn’t want to be named -- insisted the dog was not aggressive and was probably “spooked” by trick-or-treaters.<br />
The man said he’d keep Titan on a leash between the house and the car from now on.<br />
City animal control boss Bill Bruce said the dog in question was a licensed pit bull whose owners are facing charges and a likely $250 fine.<br />
“If the dog has bitten before, there’ll be a hearing,” said Bruce, adding that could lead to the animal being destroyed.<br />
He said most aggressive dogs’ behaviour is a reflection of their owners.<br />
“It’s very unnatural behaviour for a pit bull or any dog,” he said.<br />
Both Aishlyn and her mother say they’d like to see the dog put down.<br />
“She doesn’t want to see any more kids get hurt,” said Doris.<br />
<a href="mailto:bill.kaufmann@sunmedia.ca">bill.kaufmann@sunmedia.ca</a><br />
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A $250 fine? Wow, Bill, that's some serious punishment. And a newsflash - aggression isn't unnatural in fighting dogs. Idiot.</div></div>BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-63033328699109415992010-09-14T10:44:00.000-07:002010-09-14T10:44:15.424-07:00Pit bulls attack cat<a href="http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100913/CGY_dogs_cat100913/20100913/?hub=CalgaryHome">http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100913/CGY_dogs_cat100913/20100913/?hub=CalgaryHome</a><br />
<br />
Two pit bulls with "previous infractions" attacked a leashed cat in Calgary yesterday. The cat was leashed because Calgary's bylaws require cats to remain on their own property and it is my understanding that the cat bylaw in Calgary is strictly enforced. The loose, attacking pit bull bylaw looks to maybe have a little more wiggle room? <br />
<br />
I predict they'll be released to attack another cat, maybe even a toddler.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-84424760818043623872010-09-04T00:25:00.000-07:002010-09-04T00:25:07.018-07:00A pit bull nearly kills a child, the attack is hushed up but then the mother starts squawking...What does any good pit bull propogandist do in this dire situation? <br />
<br />
1. Deny the breed<br />
2. Talk about Petey, Helen Keller, and the first World War.<br />
3. Spout garbage about "the perfect family dog" and "nanny dogs".<br />
4. First there was the "Decade of the Doberman"!<br />
5. Blame huskies (if you're in Canada) and chihuahuas.<br />
6. Tell us that every dog over 50 lbs is a ticking time bomb just waiting for the opportunity to kill a child.<br />
<br />
And Bill Bruce has managed a 6 for 6, with a couple of twists even I am impressed with!<br />
<br />
1. “Basically, we don’t have a definition,” he says. "It’s not an exact science.”<br />
<br />
2. "Petey was an endearing Staffordshire terrier made popular by The Little Rascals.<br />
The TV-show pooch harkens to a time when pit bull-type dogs were not saddled with the label.<br />
<br />
They were a decorated hero dog during the First World War, Helen Keller owned one, and renowned dog expert, Cesar Millan defied stereotypes with his sweet pit bull, Daddy.<br />
3. Once touted as the perfect family dog, they are now maligned in public perception as nothing more than a toothy, ticking time-bomb, indisputably, with the power to launch devastating attacks." (okay, these quotes are from the reporter, not from Bruce directly, but I'm guessing where she got her information)<br />
<br />
4. “In the early 1900s the bloodhound was the devil dog, in the ’60s it was the German shepherd, in the ’70s it was the Doberman pincer, then it was the Rotweiller and then it was the era of pit bulls,” Bruce says (did he actually say pincer and misspell Rottweiler or is the grammar and spelling of reporters really going to the dogs?) <br />
<br />
5. Bruce says huskies are behind the bulk of human fatalities caused by dogs in Canada. <br />
<br />
"The worst bite I saw was by a 15-lb chihuahua cross which took a (chunk) almost as big as a tennis ball out of a person’s leg,” he says." <br />
<br />
6. “Bites are worst than ever in Ontario since the legislation,” Bruce says. “If you do not train it, do not control it and it is left unattended with children or running at large, all large dogs can and will bite,” he says. <br />
<br />
But my personal favorite quote from Bill doesn't fit in the top 6, in fact I've never quite seen anything like it before. A new trend, perhaps? <br />
<br />
"The pit bull attacked, likely in a bid to offer protection, when its owner began throwing punches at his girlfriend. <br />
<br />
His owner told city officials to euthanize it.<br />
<br />
It was a done deal but heartbreaking, says Bruce, given the darling pooch passed behaviour assessments with flying colours.<br />
<br />
“Her only offence was being a pit bull,” Bruce says of the case several years ago in Calgary where two people were bitten by their own dog"<br />
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Now, the only case of a pit bull attacking its owners and being put down in Calgary that I can recall showing up in the news occurred in March of 2009. The dog attacked the man first, then the woman, and the man was unable to free the woman from the dog's grip. The responding police officers had to taser the dog 3 times to subdue it. The only article still in existence that I could locate regarding that attack was this one:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/health/dog-attacks-owner-couple-to-stop-their-fight_100172622.html">http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/health/dog-attacks-owner-couple-to-stop-their-fight_100172622.html</a><br />
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Dog attacks owner couple to stop their fight<br />
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March-28-09 9:05:49 PM by IANS ( Leave a comment ) <br />
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Toronto, March 29 (IANS) A fight between a Canadian couple upset their faithful dog so much that he attacked them to end the fight.<br />
<br />
But in the process, the dog bloodied the husband and his wife so badly that they had to be rushed to hospital for multiple stitches.<br />
<br />
The incident happened Friday night in Calgary city when a pit bull cross got angry as it saw his masters fighting. According to Calgary Herald, the pit bull cross attacked its owners when the couple began shouting at each other loudly.<br />
<br />
A police spokesman told the newspaper said the attack began just before 9 p.m. when the argument between the man and woman became nasty.<br />
<br />
The dog first attacked the man and then the woman.<br />
<br />
“The man managed to get the dog off, but the woman could not,” said the police spokesman.<br />
<br />
“They were both bitten very seriously, all over their bodies, head, face, neck, arms, everywhere,” he added.<br />
<br />
The bleeding couple were immediately rushed to hospital where they received multiple stitches for bite injuries.<br />
<br />
Ed Karout, a neighbour who witnessed the attack, told the newspaper, the dog was “all over” the woman. “The dog was actually bitting at her and pulling at her.<br />
<br />
“It was pretty bad.”<br />
<br />
He said, “I saw blood all over her shirt. She was trying to get into the house. (The man) was trying to pull her in, and the (dog was) dragging her back out.”<br />
<br />
He said he started honking his horn to distract the dog, but it didn’t work.<br />
<br />
The dog was captured and handed over to veterinary authorities, police said.<br />
<br />
More at : Dog attacks owner couple to stop their fight <a href="http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/health/dog-attacks-owner-couple-to-stop-their-fight_100172622.html#ixzz0yXiFSCEc">http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/health/dog-attacks-owner-couple-to-stop-their-fight_100172622.html#ixzz0yXiFSCEc</a> <br />
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The dog's "only offense" was certainly not being a pit bull, it was savagely and relentlessly attacking 2 people for 10 to 15 minutes and sending them both to the hospital. And that dog was a male - I remember Bruce making mewling noises about it not being neutered and it being "dominant". Was there <strong>another</strong> attack that didn't make the news or is he just forgetting things?<br />
<br />
So Alphie wasn't the first dangerous pit bull that passed Calgary's behaviour assessment with "flying colours"? Methinks Calgary needs a new behaviour assessment tool.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-14292899587990580612010-09-01T20:29:00.000-07:002010-09-01T20:29:43.553-07:00But, but, but...every little pit bull bite makes the news!?But apparently this one didn't. This 9 year-old boy was mauled by a pit bull sometime "last month" in Calgary, according to this article. Judging from the current state of his facial wounds, his attack happened a week or more (I would say more) ago and I didn't see a single report. Surgeons say the little boy nearly died from his wounds but the attack wasn't even reported? I wonder if it was even recorded? Bill? Greg?<br />
<br />
Here's the article. Everything in parentheses is mine.<br />
<br />
Here's the link, look at the pictures: http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100901/CGY_Pitbull_Ban_100901/20100901/?hub=CalgaryHome<br />
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Mother calls for pit bull ban<br />
<br />
Dakota Van Diest Pollon survived a viscious attack by a pit bull.<br />
<br />
Dakota Van Diest Pollon ended up needing surgery and more than 300 stitches after the pit bull attack<br />
<br />
At the request of his owner, Bruno was put down after the attack <strong>(good thing, because you know rehoming is the favored method of pit bull abatement in Algarycay)</strong>.<br />
<br />
The mother of a nine-year-old Calgary boy is calling for a province-wide ban on pit bull terriers and rottweilers. <br />
<br />
Dakota Van Diest Pollon was attacked by a pit bull last month while at the home of his sister's boyfriend. <br />
<br />
The boyfriend wasn't home at the time and the sister eventually mustered up the strength to pull off the dog. <br />
<br />
By the time is was over, Dakota needed surgery and more than 300 stitches. <br />
<br />
"I honestly thought he was on his death bed. It looked so horrific," says Angie Pollon, Dakota's mother. <br />
<br />
Surgeons say the nine-year-old came within an inch of losing his life. <br />
<br />
Dakota has a long recovery ahead of him as he tries to heal from more than the physical wounds. "Every night I wake up and see pit bulls surrounding my whole bed, everywhere, they're jumping up and barking at me," says Dakota. <br />
<br />
The three-year-old pit bull had never attacked before. At the owner's request, he was put down on Tuesday. <br />
<br />
Dakota's mother is now calling for a provincial ban on pit bulls and rottweilers. She wants them to be labeled dangerous dogs like they are in Ontario. "I would say to any pit bull owner that they're harbouring a killer," says Pollon. <br />
<br />
Officials with Calgary Bylaw Services say the city will not be advocating for a ban because it believes the owner is at fault, not the breed. "This is a behaviour issue, not a breed issue," says Greg Steinraths. <br />
"We look at the whole philosophy. We make sure the dog is licenced, spayed, neutered, they need proper training and care and ensure they do not become a nuisance or threat," says Steinraths. <strong>(And don't forget about rehoming them, Greg, because you KNOW biting dogs that get new homes immediately cease biting...like Alphie)</strong>.<br />
<br />
Bylaw Services says its policies do work and adds that Calgary has less dog bites per capita than other cities around the world<strong> (I wonder how many of them are from pit bulls? I wonder how many of them, like this one, never make the news?).</strong><br />
<br />
The province also says it is not considering a ban on pit bulls.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5103250681249389134.post-57665869035540290232010-08-31T10:48:00.000-07:002010-08-31T10:48:52.075-07:00Alphie - triple biter, cop threatener, and....loving wigglebutt with "no serious issues"?Family brawl sparks dog attack in Calgary<br />
<br />
CALGARY - Three people were taken to hospital with bite wounds after the family dog attacked them during a brawl Sunday afternoon in Calgary.<br />
<br />
Mark Travadi was walking home from the store about 2:30 p.m. when he saw the door to his Pinemont Rd. N.E. house fly open, his brother, sister and nephew spill out to the lawn and begin fighting.<br />
<br />
Before he knew it, his one-and-a-half-year-old American Staffordshire Terrier, a pitbull-type breed, started attacking them one by one.<br />
<br />
Travadi said his sister, Lauren Henault, threw a backpack at her 14-year-old son, Lennon Henault, and the dog, named Alphie, responded aggressively, he believes defensively.<br />
<br />
He intervened and took Alphie into the garage where he then bit his brother, Basil Travadi, on the arm.<br />
<br />
“He’s never responded well to violence but it is a surprise he would take it to this level,” Travadi said.<br />
<br />
“I’ve never seen him behave like that.<br />
<br />
“Once he gets mad, it’s hard to stop him.”<br />
<br />
Previously, a cop called to the house to break up a fight between him and his brother had to pull a gun on the dog when he became aggressive, Travadi said.<br />
<br />
While Alphie is usually very well behaved, trained, and walked often, he acts up when people are aggressive, he said.<br />
<br />
“I love the fact that he’s territorial but I can’t have a dog I can’t trust,” he said.<br />
<br />
“I can’t control him when people are violent and I’m not there.<br />
<br />
“It’s very inappropriate, I’m embarrassed.”<br />
<br />
The dog first latched onto his nephew’s shoe, biting into his foot, before nipping his sister’s thigh.<br />
<br />
“He’ll bite the person that he loves,” he said referring to the teen.<br />
<br />
Paramedics took the three to hospital in stable condition and bylaw officers seized the dog.<br />
“I’m a dog lover, he’s my first dog,” he said.<br />
<br />
“It hurts like hell to lose a dog but people come before animals.<br />
<br />
“I shouldn’t have left him unattended.”<br />
<br />
The dog, which Bill Bruce, director of animal and bylaw services said has never been a problem before, will be assessed and the matter investigated.<br />
<br />
Bruce said it’s not uncommon for dogs to become aggressive during a chaotic situation.<br />
<br />
“They can’t stand disorder in the pack,” he said.<br />
<br />
Neighbour Craig Northup said he saw a family melee break out that looked like it was a fight over the dog.<br />
<br />
“I heard yelling and screaming and then louder yelling and screaming and ‘he’s taking the dog, he’s taking the dog’,” he said.<br />
<br />
“One guy was trying to take the dog and the dog became confused.<br />
<br />
“It’s not even the dog’s fault — everyone was yelling.”<br />
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This dog bit three separate people badly enough that all three had to be taken to the hospital. Previously, this dog had acted aggressively toward a police officer, causing the officer to draw his gun. The dog is clearly unstable in situations which involved heightened emotion AND it now has a bite history. Surely Bill Bruce will appropriately "punish the deed", right?<br />
<br />
Nope. Bill's going to send this dog to live with a different member of the same family.<br />
<br />
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<br />
"The pitbull that attacked members of its owner’s family when they started fighting has passed a behaviour assessment and will now live with other relatives, bylaw officials said Monday.<br />
<br />
Alphie, an American Staffordshire Terrier, bit three people Aug. 15 when they started fighting at their Pinemont Rd. N.E. home.<br />
<br />
Animal control officers seized the dog as all three were sent to hospital to have bite marks treated.<br />
<br />
“The dog had a clean record otherwise,” said bylaw head Bill Bruce.<br />
<br />
“It happened inside a family unit and we met with the family and the dog owner and another family member who felt he could provide a more stable environment for the dog.”<br />
<br />
A behaviour assessment showed no serious issues, said Bruce, so the dog was released on Friday to the owner’s relative, who lives outside the city.<br />
<br />
“They’ve consented to all the conditions about training,” said Bruce.<br />
<br />
“Of course we’re going to stay on this very carefully.<br />
<br />
“The dog’s behaviour assessment is very promising and the owners who are taking over know exactly what they are doing, they know what has to happen and in terms of public safety, we’re comfortable all the safeguards are in place.”<br />
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The behaviour assessment showed no serious issues? WTH? The real-world behaviour assessment just showed us some really serious issues, didn't it Bill? <br />
<br />
Did you appropriately test the dog? Really? What was the test? Did you test the dog around a group of angry adults or excited children, for instance? What happens when the new owner walks this dog past an arguing couple on a street? What happens when the next door neighbour's kids start screaming as kids are prone to doing?<br />
<br />
I predict we haven't heard the last of Alphie.BBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05321575195972119974noreply@blogger.com8