Another defect of Bylaw A300

It's taking me longer to write my 3rd newsletter because it's going to be about a controversial subject - the Canadian Kennel Club - what it is, what they do, who they represent, what does it mean to be a registered breeder, where do we find a CKC breeder, and where SHOULD they be. It's taking me longer to research and think about than I thought it would.

Tonight I was on the HRM's website and came across something that I thought was interesting though.

Lee Steeves - who is "CKC Director for Zone 1" which I assume for the East Coast - made a presentation at the same public hearing last September 11th, 2007 that I did about Bylaw A300 - and she presented as a rep for CKC and the breeders who belong to that club, and what she said was that

"This By-Law will negatively impact the pure bred dog and cat world such that the kennels that exist in HRM will no longer be able to exist inside the city or the owners will have to stop breeding. She noted the By-Law defines owners of pets that show at dog shows as a kennel."

What she also said was that the CKC doesn't register kennels - they register puppies.

The HRM's staffers and bureaucrats listened to her, and what they recommended based on her was -

1. Delete all of Section 7, Kennel Registration; or
2. Delete Section 7.2(c).

Originally the Bylaw A300 said:

Kennel Registration
7 (1) No person shall own or operate a kennel within the Municipality without having registered the kennel and licensed the dogs or cats owned by the kennel with the License Administrator.
(2) At or before the time of registration, the owner or operator of a kennel shall provide to the License Administrator:
(a) the name, address and telephone number of the owner or operator;
(b) the trade or business name of the kennel, where appropriate;
(c) proof that the breeder operating a kennel is registered with the Canadian Kennel Club, if applicable;
(d) an occupancy permit for the kennel issued by the Development Officer; and
(e) the applicable registration fee pursuant to Administrative Order 11, the License and Fees Administrative Order.
(3) The acceptance of any kennel registration does not relinquish or release any kennel owner or operator from complying with any other ByLaw of the Municipality or Provincial legislation.

So that whole section - section 7 - was removed from the bylaw.

What was left was the breeders and CKC members are just like every other dog owner in the HRM - every one of their dogs has to have a city licence - and pay $10 or $15 each depending on whether or not they have vaccinated against rabies.

On the agenda for the July 8th, 2008 Regional Council minutes - there is a "Councilor request for information" form from which says:

http://www.halifax.ca/council/agendasc/documents/080708ca1142.pdf

"I have been contacted by the owners of a dog breeding kennel within my District. They have been operating this kennel for the past 30 years. There has always been a provision for a kennel license that they have complied with year after year. Since the approval of the new animal bylaw they no longer need the permit, however, they are now at a huge disadvantage because the new bylaw states that all dog owners will have to license their dogs at a greater cost, which for breeders could amount to several hundreds of dollars each year. This will cause undue hardship for them. I am requesting that Council consider an amendment in an effort to assist these owners and those in similar circumstances."

There was a request for recommendation report back to Regional Council - but I haven't seen any report that's come back through the agendas or minutes yet. The councilor who requested this for their constituent was Jackie Barkhouse, District 8.

Isn't this interesting? I wonder how this breeder feels about the CKC getting involved with developing HRM dog policy - organizations like the CKC, and dare I say it - the Dog Legislation Council of Canada - are always talking about how they are always "involved behind the scenes" developing policy and good laws with municipalities and governments who ask them - because they are the experts on this sort of thing - and governments and large corporations and businesses realize it. They don't need to blow their own horn or tout their credentials - governments come to them at this point now. I guess perfection doesn't exist yet, however.

I wonder how THIS breeder feels about Lee Steeves and the CKC being
involved with the development of Bylaw A300 and their recommendation
to take the kennel registration process out of Bylaw A300?