Ford government rethinking Ontario´s ban on pit bulls
(The Star Food)

Premier Doug Ford’s government is rethinking Ontario’s long-standing and controversial pit bull ban, the Star has learned.The move is likely to spark an emotional debate over the dogs considered docile family pets by many and deadly predators by others, who point to news reports such as graphic police body-cam video obtained by an Ohio TV station showing officers Tasering and later shooting a pit bull that had chomped its owner’s arm. Ban opponents like the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association see this as the best chance in years to neuter the 2005 legislation as two Progressive Conservative MPPs also push to have it repealed, with petitions circulating and a private member’s bill expected later this fall.Attorney General Doug Downey’s office confirmed Friday that “the government is considering all options with regards to the Dog Owners’ Liability Act and breed-specific legislation.�That’s good news for dog lovers who consider the ban discriminatory and not based on scientific data, and who were disappointed when New Democrat and Tory MPPs unsuccessfully attempted to overturn the legislation under the previous Liberal government. “We have very high hopes,� Hannah Sotropa of the Toronto Humane Society said Friday. The ban shepherded by former Liberal attorney general Michael Bryant required pit bull owners to muzzle, leash and sterilize their dogs, or face a $10,000 fine or up to six months in jail — or both. It also outlawed the breeding of the dogs and banned them from being brought into the province.Supporters of the restriction warn that pit bulls are flat-out dangerous, citing deadly incidents such as one last weekend in which a Virginia woman was fatally injured when her two-year-old pit bull lunged at her throat and wouldn’t let go.On Monday, an Oklahoma man died in hospital after being attacked by two pit bulls and a mixed breed. Police responding to the 911 call had to shoot ...