Christian Pace is MSPCA’s own dog behaviourist. Here is his Facebook post and thoughts about the new regulation on the bully breeds:
“I have eagerly waited for the publication of new regulations restricting bully breed ownership and breeding as we have intakes that measure. We are seeking clarity on the fate of the dogs that will be in rescue at the time the rules become enforceable. We still need to understand how this effects Bully dogs in our rehoming program and how owned dogs as yet not microchipped will be affected, so we can continue advocating for animals whose future looks dubious.
We remind dog lovers that in countries where breed specific bans were introduced (which this is):
-abandonment and surrender increased
-irresponsible breeding and ownership did not go away
-blood sports did not go away
-dog attacks did not go away
-problematic breeding and ownership trends shifted onto new breeds leading to an eventual ban of them too.
Although we cannot fully appreciate the impact of the new regulations until we start seeing how enforcement will be executed, we infer that breeding of the listed breeds will only be allowed legally through registration with a kennel club registered with the Director. This immediately reduces the number of litters that may be bred legally without a blanket ban, that we argued may be detrimental. The European Bully Kennel Club is the only club with a comprehensive code of ethics that guarantees a high standard of quality, care and safety. From our past collaboration on puppy socialisation education with other kennel clubs, we have no doubt that responsible breeders share our hopes for a clamp down on breeding and our frustration with the missed opportunity. We feel the government missed a golden chance to introduce publicly responsible regulations to mandate health and temperament testing of parents and socialisation of all puppies in everyone’s best interest.
There are elements of the new regulations that we believe are over-reaching, such as the inclusion of English and French Bulldogs and Boston Terriers is the list of breeds, which aren’t excessively abandoned and don’t pose the same public health risks. While we aren’t advocating for these breeds to become the new trend, we also are mindful that limiting the gene pool may hinder efforts to improve their extreme deformities and improve their welfare.
We will continue liaising with kennel clubs to improve their codes of conduct. Mindful that such club regulations vary wildly, we will continue to urge members of the public seeking a puppy of any breed to do their due diligence, as legal compliance as yet does not ensure safety or quality.”