Monday, September 21, 2009

Three for the good guys

The nightmares for Capone, Maddie, Carter and their owners are over. All three dogs will be released by Sarnia animal control back to their owners after three weeks of totally unnecessary detentions and threat of death.

From The Observer, Dogs released by city:

[Sarnia animal control] will release three dogs that were scheduled to be euthanized.

The suspected pit bull canines were picked up by animal control because they possessed "similar characteristics" to the provincially-banned breed.

The animals, named Capone, Maddie and Carter were examined by an expert of the owners' choice and one of the city’s choice.

Both examinations found that the dogs were not pit bulls nor do they have the appearance or physical characteristics of the breed.


The situation got pretty tense last week when a CKC judge was brought in by the owners of the dogs who examined the dogs and determined them not to be Pit Bulls but SAC didn't feel that was good enough and waited for a determination by their own expert. Apparently, the SAC expert also sided with the dogs.

I'm surprised SAC didn't push to bring in more dog breed experts at that point for a best three out of five.

I just don't get what it is that compels some people to want to go out and snatch puppies off the street just so they can try to euthanize them when they can't even identify breed properly, never mind that the puppies have done nothing wrong. What would have happened if the owners hadn't protested or if they hadn't protested to a sympathetic ear at The Observer?

A huge congrats to Korinn Seabrook and Sonya Pimentel for standing up for their dogs and bringing them back home.

6 comments:

Heather B said...

This good news needs to be spread around about these three pups so other dog owners won`t be so afraid to stand up for what`s right. Over 4000 dogs have been put to death needlessly , since this friggin law came into effect, I`m curious to know how many even had any Pitty blood in them. Bets are...very few. Congrats to Korinn, Sonya and the pups.
I read somewhere that DNA testing isn`t conclusive because not all breeds are represented. How much Pitty blood does it take to make a pitbull? Who cares? A mutt is a mutt is a mutt. Sarnia needs to back off and worry more about dangerous humans and the evils they do to their dogs .
And a suggestion..make sure your vet records what breed mix he/she feels your sweet Muttly is .Also carry a copy of health records in your glove box. Then tell them all to go to..

Ian said...

Great news.
I was wondering about these dogs and was afraid to ask.
Hopefully this result will help others.

Social Mange said...

I am very pleased to see that the City of Sarnia is behaving rationally and releasing these dogs. Now I would like to see further rational behaviour by the City of Sarnia in the form of abandoning persecution and killing of dogs solely because of their shape. Shape is not a predictor of behaviour, a dog should not die because it's a politically-targeted shape, and the focus should be shifted from the dog's appearance to the owner's level of responsibility. That is rational and just.

As for DNA testing, KC Dog Blog has a link to a Wall Street Journal article about dog DNA testing and how suspect the tests are. The largest breed database only has 157 of approximately 400 breeds.

Lynda said...

Glad the pups are back in their rightful place, but so sad this had to happen in the first place. Obviously Sarnia Animal Control Officers have a lot of time on their hands.

Ian said...

Just saw this story and it reminded me of your Sarnia story.
http://news.therecord.com/News/Local/article/613149

Luckily this dog has also been freed but apparently with a lot less trouble.

Fred said...

Ian, thanks for the link. Good article.