Fraser Valley looks to add more ‘bite’ to deadly dog attack bylaw

FRASER VALLEY (NEWS 1130) – They are stories that horrify pet owners everywhere: dogs that kill other dogs.

While many people talk about doing something about it, it appears politicians in the Fraser Valley now are.

The regional district is putting some bite in its animal control bylaws, and is revamping them in order to allow for a change.

The bylaw currently in place puts “kill” in with the words “attack,” “bite,” or “cause injury.” If it was found that your pet did one of those things, the district could hit you with a $250 fine.

However, the Fraser Valley Regional District is now taking the first step toward increasing the deadly dog-on-dog attack penalty by isolating the word “kill,” freeing up the option to give that category a higher fine.

How much that increased levy will be still has to be decided.

“Animal Control Officers have been present on a few occasions when the lack of clarity of certain terms in the bylaw has resulted in a ticket not being upheld,” a report on the matter reads. “In some cases due to the lack of penalty it resulted in the dog owner continuing with unsafe practices.”

The report notes “clarity has been added to several contraventions that support the intent of the ticket so that there is a better chance of a ticket being upheld.”

The proposed changes are part of a larger bylaw overhaul, which also includes stricter rules on transporting aggressive dogs.

“Now, if an aggressive dog is leaving its enclosure or house to be put into a vehicle, or from its house to its enclosure, it must be muzzled. Also, if the aggressive dog is in a vehicle it must be muzzled,” the report reads. “Unfortunately, situations have occurred where an aggressive dog during transition to a vehicle or an enclosure has escaped, or while in a vehicle has jumped out of the window.”

Head trainer Shelagh Begg at Dizine Canine says that canine behaviour is influenced by how they are raised.

“Dogs are a product of how we raise them and how we allow them to interact in our community,” says Begg. “So, if they’re getting into trouble, obviously there’s a human component as well and I do think fining for incidences is a good thing.”

She says incidences of dogs killing other dogs is very extreme, but that it is not unusual for dogs to act out against one another if they are in scenarios they are not able to cope with.

For her though, fines are only part of what could be done.

“I think there should be other conditions such as training, making sure that the owners receive assistance and ensuring that it doesn’t happen again with either the same dog or another dog that they get,” she says.

Tim Zaharchuk with the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association hopes that fines will get dog owners thinking about the dogs they own.

“For the average person, would it make a difference? I think it would make them think twice about having a dog that had the potential for that,” says Zaharchuk. “And that they would either seek appropriate training or perhaps not have a dog that they couldn’t handle.”

The district aims to provide the people in the region more clarity when it comes to enforcement. If approved, the bylaw amendments would apply to the City of Abbotsford, the City of Chilliwack, the District of Mission, the District of Kent, and the Village of Harrison Hot Springs.

Read the full report on pages 188 to 190 here, or find the report below:

Fraser Valley animal control bylaw amendment dog attacks

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today