# Montreal Quebec Set To Pass Devastating Euthanasia Law ..



## Geoff Empey (Jan 8, 2008)

http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2012/08/09/scratch_death/ 

Some nasty legislation trying to be pushed through here.


----------



## Craig Snyder (May 7, 2012)

Geoff Empey said:


> http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2012/08/09/scratch_death/
> 
> Some nasty legislation trying to be pushed through here.


Not sure of others but that link didn't work for me. I'm evidently forbidden from the site.

Craig


----------



## Joby Becker (Dec 13, 2009)

wow.....

what a dirty way to do a really crazy and shitty thing....


----------



## Joby Becker (Dec 13, 2009)

MONTREAL, CANADA—The City of Montreal is apparently trying to sneak a new bylaw into effect that would provide for the automatic and mandatory euthanasia in cases where a dog causes a mere skin laceration—-regardless of the context of the severity of the injury.

In other words, if your dog scratches a person, the dog would automatically be put down.

According to the Montreal SPCA, the Montreal City Council plans to take action on the proposed bylaw at their next meeting on Monday, Aug. 20.

But you’d never know it by visiting the city’s website. If the proposal is contained on the website, it’s not readily accessible and there’s no agenda posted for the Aug. 20 meeting. http://ville.montreal.qc.ca/

If it weren’t for the SPCA, it’s likely the council would have secretly enacted the proposal.
Persons who attempt to learn about animal control services in the city quickly learn that such appears to be a secretive operation. Visitors to the city website are informed that only authentification is needed to access the information SECRET ANIMAL CONTROL and information pertaining to the city’s animal control services is “a private system under monitoring. Any unauthorized access or tentative constitutes an illegal act which will be reported to the authorities and which is liable to recourse in justice”.

So much for open public information, so much for democratic government.

The SPCA says that the Montreal city council will discuss its new highly objectionable and unconstitutional bylaw concerning dogs at its meeting on Aug. 20. 

Save Wicca has organized a protest to be held beginning at 1:30 p.m. on Aug. 20 in front of the Montreal City Hall. The council session begins at 2 p.m. and ends at 4 p.m.

The proposal gives dog owners only 24 hours to find an accredited canine evaluator if their dog allegedly causes a laceration on a person or other dog. Any dog, any type of injury where skin is broken is served with an automatic death sentence regardless of scenario or circumstances.



The SPCA says the 24 hour delay will not permit a dog’s owner sufficient time to obtain their own expert evidence as the wait list for dog behavior specialists in the city ofMontrealis generally greater than a week.

Unless the people of Montreal take immediate action, a new bylaw being proposed by city government would be even more draconian than the current one which resulted in the death of the much beloved Wicca last month, the SPCA says.

“What is so scary about what Mayor (Gerald) Tremblay’s office is proposing is that it means that if, for example, a dog was to bite another dog or a person while defending themselves the dog would be automatically sentenced to death by the City” said Alanna Devine, director of Animal Advocacy at the Montreal SPCA, “and it will be impossible for dog owners to even contest this death sentence because the delay of 24 hours is not nearly enough time to find, hire and consult with an expert in canine behavior”.

Montreal residents should attend the Aug. 20 council meeting, call city hall and send emails to voice their adamant opposition to Mayor Gerald Tremblay’s plan for what could result in essentially a mass extermination of dogs in the city.

A sample letter which can be sent to the Mayor and council has been prepared by the Montreal SPCA:

Concerning: Current and proposed animal control by-law in the City of Montreal

Dear Mayor Tremblay,

As a Montreal resident, I am deeply concerned about the new animal control by-law to be put forward by the City, in particular its provisions pertaining to dangerous dogs.

As was highlighted by the recent case of Wicca, the way the current by-law deals with dangerous dogs has numerous flaws, in particular that a dog can be sentenced to death at the City’s discretion, without having to consult a qualified canine behaviorist. However, the new proposed by-law is even more problematic. I am writing you to ask that the City revisit its plans for the by-law’s dangerous dog provisions and follow the lead of other Canadian cities that have adopted a more progressive and just approach to this issue.
The new by-law that the City is proposing would provide for automatic and mandatory euthanasia in cases where a dog causes a skin laceration, regardless of the context or the severity of the injury. If a dog were to superficially scratch another dog while playing at a dog park, or bite someone in self-defense, the City would be required to sentence that dog to death. The new by-law could thus potentially result in hundreds or even thousands of dogs being killed, many of whom pose no real threat to public safety. Though the proposal establishes a review process for dog owners who wish to contest a euthanasia order, owners will only have 24 hours to obtain a behavioral evaluation, which is insufficient given the wait list for canine behaviorists in Montreal.

The decision to order euthanasia is a very serious one: it deprives a dog of his or her life, and is emotionally devastating for the dog’s human family. It is a decision that warrants robust procedural safeguards, including an impartial and qualified decision-maker, an opportunity for both sides to introduce evidence and present arguments, as well as a fair and accessible review process. A euthanasia order should be issued only once a thorough understanding of the individual dog and circumstances has been reached. More specifically, the decision-maker should be required to consider the context of the incident; the severity of the resulting injury; the risk posed by the dog as assessed by a qualified canine behaviourist; the feasibility of alternative measures to satisfy public safety concerns (such as mandatory muzzling); and the degree to which the owner is a responsible dog owner. Such procedural protections are currently seen in the by-laws of several large Canadian cities, including Calgary, Ottawa, and Toronto.

I ask that Montreal follow the lead of other Canadian cities and adopt a municipal by-law that addresses public safety concerns in a just and reasonable manner, without imposing undue consequences on the City’s animals and citizens.
Yours sincerely,

[Insert your name]
[Insert your address]

Letters should be sent to:

[email protected]

Mr. Gérald Tremblay
Mayor of Montreal
Hôtel de ville
275, Notre-Dame East
Montreal (Quebec)
H2Y 1C6

The day before the city of Montreal killed the beloved Wicca, a Staffie who was deemed dangerous because she scratched a woman who had startled her, the Montreal SPCA spoke out in support of saving Wicca, criticizing the way the case had been handled.

Wicca was killed, without due process, without having been given a chance, on July 26. http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2012/07/27/tears_flow/

http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2012/07/26/montreal_kills/

But the city didn’t care. Despite a petition containing 50,000 signatures pleading for the dog’s life, thousands of emails and phone calls to city hall from around the world, and even a judge asking the city to spare her life, the city killed her.

Government leaders killed Wicca just because they could rather than admit they were wrong about their decision and refused to back down when cornered by the public, just because they had the power to do so.

The SPCA says that the current animal control bylaw inMontreal doesn’t force officials to investigate dog incidents enough and doesn’t consider options to killing.

The SPCA also warned the public that the proposed new bylaw would bee even more stringent in cases of animal bites indicating that perhaps dog lovers should consider moving outside ofMontrealin order to protect their beloved animals.

“This case highlights the inherent flaws in the current animal control by-law, in particular that a dog can be put to death at the city’s discretion, and also raises serious red flags regarding the new proposed by-law to be put forward by the City”, the SPCA said in a statement.

Under the current by-law, a dog can be sentenced to death at the discretion of a City or borough official if the official deems the dog to be a danger to public safety or if the dog has bitten and caused a skin laceration requiring stitches.

But Wicca had not done so, a woman sustained no more than a scratch and was treated with ointment and a band-aid. A paramedic who treated the woman claimed that Wicca jumped up at him but later admitted he wasn’t injured.

Wicca’s owner, Chris Papakostas says the paramedic’s version of the story changed between the police report and the court document. Neither the woman nor the paramedic were treated in hospital.

The current by-law does not require the official, in Wicca’s case city planner Benoit Lacroix, to consult a qualified dog behavior expert, nor to assess the context of the incident, nor to consider other viable alternatives that would satisfy public safety concerns (such as mandatory muzzling) before ordering a dog’s death.

Lacroix is no dog expert, he has absolutely no training involving dogs. Lacroix based Wicca’s death order solely on a police report, without seeing the dog, without holding a hearing or reviewing evidence, without hearing from the woman and a paramedic who Wicca supposedly bit. Lacroix conducted no interviews with anyone prior to arbitrarily ordering that the dog be killed. The city ordered no evaluation of the dog and doesn’t want to see any evaluation.

In Wicca’s case, the City refused to consider expert evidence from a certified veterinary behaviorist who had assessed Wicca and had written a report regarding her behavior and temperament.

To express your concerns about Wicca’s death and to oppose the city’s proposed bylaw, 1-514-872-0311, the Montreal City Hall.

Email addresses are here:

The Mayor of Montreal Monsieur Gérald Tremblay, [email protected]ontreal.qc.ca

Other information and a contact form for the Mayor is here, elected officials and “decision makers” is here:

http://ville.montreal.qc.ca/portal/page?_pageid=6037,87793581&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL 8-9-12


----------



## Geoff Empey (Jan 8, 2008)

Some more info and a letter for petition. From the way the legislation is written even a dog in training or a IPO or Ring dog that touches a person and a representative of the government finds out through a doctor in a ER or bystander your dog could be impounded and euthanized within 24 hours not even with a bite .. a freekin scratch from a nail could be a death sentence for your dog under this legislation. 

I can't believe people have this mentality to even think of this type of legislation.

http://www.montrealdogblog.com/14278/spca-form-letter-city-montreal-proposed-by-law/


----------



## Joby Becker (Dec 13, 2009)

Geoff Empey said:


> Some more info and a letter for petition. From the way the legislation is written even a dog in training or a IPO or Ring dog that touches a person and a representative of the government finds out through a doctor in a ER or bystander your dog could be impounded and euthanized within 24 hours not even with a bite .. a freekin scratch from a nail could be a death sentence for your dog under this legislation.
> 
> I can't believe people have this mentality to even think of this type of legislation.
> 
> http://www.montrealdogblog.com/14278/spca-form-letter-city-montreal-proposed-by-law/


nuts...my dog coulda been euthanized last week, scratched the crap out of my leg, just trying to "love on me"


----------



## Marta Wajngarten (Jul 30, 2006)

This applies also if your dog scratches another dog.


----------



## rick smith (Dec 31, 2010)

for sure Montreal is OVEREGULATED and not a pet friendly city (3 pets max ?) and it would be a really absurd law if it ever will become a law. if i lived there i'd stand up and be counted

I noticed this in the web site : "The following dog breeds are also prohibited: bull terrier, Staffordshire bull terrier, American bull terrier, American Staffordshire terrier and pit bull."
(don't know much about dog breeds either)

- but the part of THIS thread threw me :
"Visitors to the city website are informed that only authentification is needed to access the information SECRET ANIMAL CONTROL and information pertaining to the city’s animal control services is “a private system under monitoring."

really; says who ??? 

I went to the web site and read everything under the animal control section
where on the web site does a "visitor" find that ??? 
-- either provide the link to SECRET ANIMAL CONTROL; or it's just hearsay imo


----------



## Zakia Days (Mar 13, 2009)

WTF is wrong w/ these people?! What can we do to oppose or put a stop to this. I don't live in Canada, but this just can't be allowed. How do we help?


----------



## Marta Wajngarten (Jul 30, 2006)

Zakia Days said:


> WTF is wrong w/ these people?! What can we do to oppose or put a stop to this. I don't live in Canada, but this just can't be allowed. How do we help?


Write to the mayor of Montreal, email address and sample letter are given. I also wrote essentially that if this is to pass I will not be visiting the city of Montreal with or without my dogs.


----------



## rick smith (Dec 31, 2010)

How do we help?

good question ...
????
maybe :
1. cleverly orchestrated TV MEDIA attention will always get a politician's attention.....social media prob not as much unless the backlash goes VIRAL
2. voter backlash ... don't know how they vote in Canada, but politicians get real worried when they feel their job security is in jeopardy


----------



## Marta Wajngarten (Jul 30, 2006)

Zakia Days said:


> WTF is wrong w/ these people?! What can we do to oppose or put a stop to this. I don't live in Canada, but this just can't be allowed. How do we help?


Write to the mayor of Montreal, email address and sample letter are given. I also wrote essentially that if this is to pass I will not be visiting the city of Montreal with or without my dogs.


----------



## rick smith (Dec 31, 2010)

i think nowadays emails might not get much attention and i wonder if the mayor would even read them or care ... in any big organization, the secretarial "firewalls" fend that off that flack for their execs

just like in advertising, any well known celebrity who gets converted to the cause, especially a well respected one, can make a public appeal that WILL be noticed because they can get the air time easily

the only thing they care about is their wallets or their ass ... that's probably where you need to hit em

outrage directed at their tourism industry officials might have a beneficial (economic) impact

but media must do it smart and not with overreactive hysteria ... which is why that "top secret animal control" section comment about the web site seemed a bit extreme when i read it; read like a conspiracy theory maniac wrote it :-(


----------



## Marta Wajngarten (Jul 30, 2006)

Sure.. not to mention it's Montreal, QC, you're sub-human if you don't speak French.


----------

