Things have been really hard around here. Especially in the past few weeks.
Some of you know that I have a dog. Her name is Naya, and she’s a pitbull kind of mix… thing. No one really knows what she is. But she has a big, goofy square face and it scares people.
It didn’t use to scare anyone. She used to go pretty unnoticed. People would even be surprised when I’d say she was a kind of pitbull. No one really knows what a pitbull is. Guys, it isn’t even an existing breed. It’s just a sort of umbrella term.
Recently, though, a woman died in her back yard. She was bitten by her neighbor’s pitbull-ish kind of dog. Now, a few important things: there was a hole in the fence; the dog had a history of biting; the owner was a fucking douche, and had a pretty well decorated (and still recent) criminal record; the dog was underfed.
And despite that, all the media had to say was “PITBULL MAULS A WOMAN TO DEATH” and “SHOULD DANGEROUS DOGS LIKE PITBULLS BE BANNED”. Public fear began to grow. That was, like, two weeks ago.
In two weeks, the capital city of Quebec (which is like 3 hours away from where the attack happened?) decided to ban pitbulls altogether. Owners of pitbulls over there have until January the 1st to, literal translation: “ get rid of their dogs”. S’en débarasser.
I’ve watched this inflate and swell with growing apprehension. Three days ago, there was an announcement that pitbulls were banned in Montréal, my home, as well. I was walking Naya in the park when I learnt it. Some guy from the news network, suit, tie and mic, ran after me and asked if I had heard the bad news. I thought he was talking about Quebec city, so I said yeah. And… I said “at least it isn’t as bad in Montréal quite yet” and he froze, and went “well, then, I’m sorry to be the one to tell you. But the mayor has prohibited pitbulls from September on.”
I’m going to have the right to keep my dog, provided she wears a muzzle at all times, keeps out of parks and fits a plethora of different complex criteria (sterilization, microchip…). The muzzle is very…Disturbing. Any canine expert will tell you that a muzzle is potentially dangerous to the dog, and should be worn as scarcely as possible, and only in a situation of training and rehabilitation. But… I can do this. To keep my dog safe.
I can license her. I’ve been wanting to do it for months. She’s already sterilized and microchipped. She is always on a lead in public. She has no agressivity problems whatsoever. She doesn’t even bark when someone is at the door.
Today, though, I heard through the grapevines that my civil responsibility insurance might not stand the same if I have a “dangerous dog”. So, like any responsible tenant would, this afternoon, I called them.
I had to answer a few typical questions. Is your dog a pure pitbull? (Cue explaining what a pitbull actually is.) Has she ever bitten someone? Has she been trained for combat? I mentioned I was ready to have my animal be evaluated by a professional of their choice. I also said that I wasn’t looking for insurance to cover any damages my dog could make. Just the standard fire, water, earthquake and shit liability insurance that I used to have. I was just looking to know whether or not having a pitbull-ish kind of dog would change anything.
The lady was pretty lighthearted about it. She said of course she’d look into it. She said she might have to call tomorrow, but when she would, she’d have the info. I hung up reassured.
She called back thirty minutes later, slightly mortified. She asked if I was sitting down.
I sat down.
Unless I write a letter to my insurance compay, stating that a pitbull no longer lives in my house or ever enters my property, they will revoke my insurance plan. I won’t be insured for fire damages, earthquakes, leaks from the roof, name it. They call it… “an augmentation of risks”.
I’ve been looking around. Articles everywhere state how difficult it is for someone with a pitbull to get insurance. Not… Not even for damages the dog might cause. I didn’t want to add to my policy “Guarantee: if the dog mauls a person to death”. I just wanted a goddamn fire coverage. I’ve made that clear, and the lady had to tell me that “as of yesterday, Intact Insurances does not insure pitbull owners anymore.”
I guess Naya increases my risk of having an earthquake destroy my property.
This dog does not in any way affect the things they guarantee protection against. This is a reactionnary, discriminatory measure, and it is commonplace in the insurance industry. In about three weeks, I will have no more insurance. If anything were to happen to my home, like I’ve seen happen before – I would go bankrupt. It would be horrible.
But I am not getting rid of my dog. Naya and I live alone in the city. Sheis my pride, my joy and my support. If only they’d let me pay more, or… Prove that she’s no risk at all (especially not when we’re talking about leaks in the roof). But they just won’t hear it.
So I guess this has been a rough week for me. I’m asking you guys to spread this as far as you can. Pitbull bans have been trending in the past few years, destroying so many lives and not improving the situation in the least. People need to see what the actual consequences of breed-specific legislation are.
Wish me luck.
This is why the fucking umbrella term ‘pitbull’ needs to stop, since they are mainly bully breed mixes. STOPPIT Not every shepherd has the same traits, neither do all bully breeds. We have American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Bull Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Bulldog, Alphapha Blue Bulldog, Bullmastiffs, Olde English Bulldogge, THE BOXER, and the working APBT Mastiff cross that is Bandogge, heck throw Cane Corso’s in their to, HELL DOGO ARENGENTIOS, which if i didn’t research dog breeds like an insane person i would of calle d my cousins dogo a pitbull.
Lets not even mention that there is the mixed breeds or bully crosses like American bully of different sizes and exotic bullies people are producing. Any. Number. Of. These. Dogs. Can. Get. Mixed. IN. And cause similar appearances to what people deem ‘pitbulls’ but guess what each dog has a different temperament that requires a different approach to training, but not every single one of these dogs is vicious.
What if we applied this same kind of mindset to every shepherd looking mix? Thats not acceptable, and it shouldn’t be acceptable here either.
Fuck breed bans and fuck journalistic fear mongering
This is fucked up and needs to be boosted. I had no idea BSL was getting so bad in Canada.
(A side note: only some muzzles are bad for dogs – the ones that forcibly hold the mouth shut. Basket muzzles allow the dog to eat, drink, and pant and be conditioned to be things that the dog is fine to wear when out in public. A dog should never wear a muzzle 24/7, but they’re not quite as bad as the OP has been lead to believe… which, considering this bullshit, is probably a really good thing).
Mooncustafer 