Clark's Harbour dog owners face tough decisions over breed ban

A young man in Clark's Harbour, N.S., whose dog was recently deemed a dangerous breed has registered his pit bull mix as a therapy dog, as another dog owner prepares to leave the town over its breed ban.

Mason Landry was one of two dog owners in the town on Cape Sable Island who were recently served paperwork saying their pets were in violation of a bylaw banning breeds such as Rottweilers and pit bulls.

"It's very upsetting, living in fear that they could take a part of my family away," said Landry.

The bylaw states that if a new home for the dog cannot be found in 72 hours, they will be seized, taken to a pound and could possibly be killed.

Landry, 23, was new to the community of roughly 750 people on the province's southwestern tip and did not know about the rule. 

He said he's been diagnosed with anxiety, and so he registered his one-year-old pit bull mix Gizmo as a therapy dog with the Canadian branch of the Assistance Dogs of America.

He said he planned on registering Gizmo even before being served notice of the bylaw violation.

"With him being there, it just helps [my anxiety] a lot," said Landry.

"The fact that they were going to try to do what they did really bothered me so I had to do everything within my power to try and prevent that from happening."

Landry said it's his understanding that therapy dogs are exempt from the bylaw, and he has filed the necessary paperwork. He has yet to hear back from the town.

He wants peace of mind that Gizmo can stay with him.

"If [Mayor Leigh Stoddart] even wants to come see my dog, he's more than welcome to," said Landry, noting Gizmo had temperament checks before his adoption from the SPCA.

"He's smart. His tricks are phenomenal. He has an inside voice — he doesn't bark, he whispers. He's so gentle … He's a 70-pound lap dog."

'We're all emotionally attached'

Landry had considered moving from the town when he was first served notice of the violation.

It's a drastic measure Jessica Lewis is currently taking.

Lewis said the town does not plan on changing the bylaw, and the family does not plan on giving up their nine-week-old blue nose pit bull named Bronx.

And so Lewis and her five-year-old and two-year-old children are moving to nearby Barrington Passage, N.S.

"It was a very hard decision … to uproot me and the children. I'm a single mother," said Lewis, whose dog is currently being fostered by a friend. 

"But a dog is considered a child as well and we're all emotionally attached to each other."

Lewis said she spoke with the mayor numerous times in an attempt to stay in the community with her dog. 

She said Stoddart told her he has received both positive and negative feedback about the breed ban.

"I think [the bylaw] is completely outrageous. It's not fair. It's outdated. I would say it's small-minded," she said.

Stoddart said hearing that the Lewis family is leaving the community is "disappointing."

"We want people to move here, but we have other bylaws which people may not be able to live with, so choices have to be made whether they move to any town or municipality," Stoddart said in an email.

Stoddart did not address the issue of Landry's therapy dog in his email statement to CBC.

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