“Veterinarians have an ethical responsibility to the animals they treat and tail docking goes against that responsibility,” Brendan Matthews, Ph.D., president of the college, said in a press release.  “We ask other provinces to follow suit and for breed associations to recognize the changing times.”

British Columbia is not the first place to seek to end this barbaric practice.  It’s already been banned in Australia, many places throughout Europe, and now parts of Canada as well.  Now, if we could only get the United States to get on board with this, and really get the ball rolling as far as making docking a thing of the past.

So far, in the United States, only two states have any kinds of laws when it comes to docking.  Maryland and Pennsylvania only allow it on dogs of a certain age, but there’s nothing anywhere that stops it from being done altogether.

Apparently, it’s many of the kennel clubs in the US that say docking is considered an historical standard for particular dogs.  They believe that’s the way the dogs look best.  However, the American Veterinary Medical Association disagrees and disapproves of docking of the tail or ears for any cosmetic purpose.  They are one of many groups in the US pushing for tighter regulations on docking.

The post College of Veterinarians of British Columbia Votes to Ban Tail Docking appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

“The fight is far from being over, but we are very pleased with this first victory,” Sophie Gaillard, a lawyer for the Montreal SPCA, said in a press release.  “We are particularly delighted to be able to continue finding adoptive homes for all of our healthy and behaviorally sound dogs, regardless of their physical appearance.”

While blanket legislation has been staved off for the moment, a new battle begins as city officials and animal welfare groups try to decide on whether pit bulls should be outlawed in all 19 of the city’s boroughs.

“A city has the right to decide on its territory how to best protect it citizens,” Montreal mayor Denis Coderre told reporters after Wednesday’s decision.

To see our first coverage of the BSL in Montreal, click here.  To see the second story, click here.  Be sure to stay tuned to Life With Dogs for more information as it’s released!

The post PUPDATE: Montreal Puts Indefinite Hold on Anti-Pit Bull Legislation! appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

Back in 2015, the family’s house was hit by a missile during some fighting that broke out in the heavily contested area. They had to flee, and in a hurry. They just weren’t going to be allowed to bring Fox with them. They packed up what little was left and were off to Montreal, Quebec. When there, the young son in the family wrote to SPCA International to tell them about Fox, and see if there was any way they could help.

He sent the following in an email:

“I left Syria urgently with my mom and my brother, but we left our lovely dog, Fox, in Aleppo, Syria. We left him with our dad in a very dangerous area named Syrian El-Jadideh. Please help us bring our Fox [to Montreal]. Mom [is] always crying. She is extremely worried about Fox.”

The amazing people at SPCA International were able to find Fox, believe it or not, not far from where the family home was.  Once they were sure that they actually had him, the long and arduous journey home began.  It would be a very difficult trip out of Syria to Damascus, Turkey.  Once there, he took a car to Lebanon, and then finally to Germany.  Fox was put on a plane from there to Canada, where he was reunited with his family.

The post Dog Rescued from Syria Is Reunited With Family in Canada appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

Alfie’s former owner kept him chained up outside.  All day, every day, for years, with nothing but concrete to lie on.  And then, because he barked and cried to come in, his muzzle was taped shut.  Neighbors had enough of being ignored by the SPCA, and at this last straw, jumped the fence to save him from the abuse.

It seems that for making simple mistakes that every puppy makes while learning, Alfie, who was nameless at the time, was forced to live outside by his impatient and unloving owner.  For scratching at the door to be let in, he was chained so he couldn’t come near it.  For crying out to be loved and pay attention to by his family, he had his mouth tightly taped closed.

It was obvious what kind of toll the years of being shackled was taking on him; he lunged and snapped and barked incessantly.  Next door neighbors watched Alfie endure this abuse and neglect, which tormented them as much as it did him.  They called the SPCA repeatedly, but as keeping a dog tethered wasn’t illegal, there was nothing they could do.

So the neighbors took matters into their own hands.  One day they hopped the fence and cut Alfie free.  It is unclear just what happened to him at this point, but as Animal Advocates Society posted his story, likely it is they who took him in.

To keep such an intelligent and social creature so isolated, unstimulated, and uncomfortable is immoral, and Alfie was very sensitive after the years of mental anguish.  But over time, he healed.

He was blessed with a new family, one who was every bit as loving as his previous one was heartless.  He rejoiced in being free to run, play, and snuggle.

Alfie was cherished by his human family members, and befriended by a dog buddy who looked a lot like him.  Though he is no longer alive, he spent every single day of the rest of his life being happy and free.

The post The Town Refused to Help, So Neighbors Saved This Chained, Taped-Up Dog Themselves appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

Blue is the best friend and service dog for Owen Lima; a man who had a severe car accident 40 years ago and has been living with a brain injury.

Owen and Blue were walking through Northgate Mall, when he saw a hiring stand for a new Lowe’s location was opening, and he decided to apply; only he told the recruiter that he and Blue were a package deal.

The store manager didn’t even bat an eye and conducted the interview as normal and decided to hire both Owen and Blue for the store.

He also did a little research about service dogs and found that all they needed was for Blue have a uniform and a place to chill out with some water, food and a blanket.

Lowe’s Canada shared this image on Facebook, and so far it’s been shared 15K times since Owen started this past Monday.

He’s a also got a little name tag. How awesome is that?

So far, Owen’s doing well. Customers love him and Blue and for the first time in a decade, he feels like he belongs.

As a customer service representative, Owen is able to help the community he’s grown up in, as he knows everyone and they all know him as well.

As for Blue, he’s loving it.

Keep up the good work, guys!

The post Hardware store’s got a furry new hire! appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

The boys are from Cross Point, Manitoba.  Dominick Monias and Leighton Ladyka are neighbors and friends, and it was them that ended up finally freeing the stuck dog.  Adults and rescue volunteers tried approaching the dog they dubbed “Her,” but she simply wouldn’t have it.  No matter whom approached her, she made it all but impossible for anyone to help her.

Well, she made it all but impossible, except for the two boys.  They were able to go right up to where she was, comfort her, and managed to get her to trust them enough to get the lid off of her.  Dominick positioned himself so that he could gently grasp her snout just in case she decided to snap, and Leighton pulled the lid off.

The dog is now with the Norway House Animal Rescue, who had been trying to rescue her and her pups all along.  The dog has actually been evading capture for over a year now.  Last year, right around this time, there were reports of the dog having many litters of pups in someone’s backyard.  No matter what was done, she evaded capture every time.

Debra Vanderkerkhove, the director of the rescue group said, “Two young boys did what no one else could do.  They got the lid off the Mom all by themselves!  They managed to trap her in the shed then they closed the door.  Trudy’s son held her snoot, while the other boy pulled the lid off.  True Community heroes.  Wow, I am speechless.  They deserve an award.  These boys are pretty happy that they got the lid off the dog just a while ago.”

The post Heroic Young Boys Rescue Mother Dog Stuck in Trash Can Lid appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

Keith Mann is the manager of flight operations for Suncor Energy, which has a private airline for employees.  But when dozens of animals needed to be evacuated alongside their humans, he was glad to help them, too.

“We didn’t want any people to make the decision to stay behind because they couldn’t take their pets so we sort of broke, or bended our policies on the carriage of pets to let that happen,” he told HuffPost Canada.

A menagerie made their way on board – dogs, cats, rabbits, chinchillas, a hedgehog, a frog, and possibly even a pig.

“It was a range of pets, so you can just imagine the potential of it. But once they got airborne it was just total tranquility

“Our crews made sure the number of pets they would take inside the cabin they could carry safely, so the largest number we had was 36 in the cabin.”

An enormous dog, weighing nearly 200 pounds, sat right in a seat like everyone else.

“He just hopped into a seat and wouldn’t get out, so we were trying to encourage him to sit on the ground.”

Two dogs had to be locked in the bathroom for the safety of some of the smaller critters on board, and Mann said a family of five dogs just huddled together.

“It was pretty quiet when we were up in the air,” he told The Star. “You could just tell everyone was so happy to be out of camp and on their way.”

People have not been charged to fly with this airline.  Money has been the last thing anyone’s worried about.  The safety of people and their pets has been the sole concern.

“It was ‘worry about it after’. The main thing was make sure we had enough airplanes and enough time to get people out and do it safely because it was a mass effort,” Mann said.

“It’s not a big airport we’re talking about. It’s got one tarmac and one runway. And we had to coordinate all the airplanes taking off and landing and loading. So that was the primary focus.”

This has certainly been one of the most memorable experiences in Mann’s piloting career.

“It’s definitely one of those things you never imagine yourself doing,” he said, laughing. “But I’m glad we did it.”

The post Canadian Pilot Breaks the Rules to Fly Pets to Safety During Wildfire appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

Neighbors and residents said the dog could be seen on the 16^th floor balcony of an apartment.  It was very cold outside, and witnesses said that the dog was trying frantically to get back into the apartment.  Apparently, the dog’s human was not in the apartment at the time, but decided that the balcony was going to be an OK place to keep the dog, despite the frigid temperatures.

Someone put pictures and information about the dog on social media website.  That set off a domino effect that lead to tons of posts all over social media outlets about what was going on.  It was only a matter of time before someone called the police in.

They did show up to the apartment, and finally did get a hold of the person living there.  The people that live in the building and in the surrounding area relentlessly called law enforcement of every kind, trying to get someone to at very least let the dog in.  The dog was put back in the apartment, but that was as far as law enforcement could take things.

The police filed a report, and advised the person that should something of this nature, or anything that could be considered neglect or abuse will be very bad for them, legally.  At this time, the dog is still there, but that hasn’t stopped people from commenting on social media.  Many believe that the dog should have been removed, but given that there were no prior reports of animal neglect or abuse by the resident in question, the warning is the best they could do.

Todd Hofley is the president of the Liberty Village Residents Association (you can click the link to view the Facebook page).  Since the incident occurred at the complex, he has proposed a new set of regulations.

“I will bring forward a potential template for pet owners that stipulates if there is reasonable belief that their pet is in immediate and life threatening danger because of getting outside that the condominium corporation has the right to enter the unit and bring the animal inside,” said Hofley on Facebook.

What do you think?  Those of us that live in colder climates would assume that not putting your dog outdoors in the cold for hours while you leave is simply common sense.  How far would you go to save a dog’s life?  Have you, or has anyone you know had to call law enforcement because of someone else’s neglect?  Share your stories with us and your fellow Life With Dogs fans right here in the comment section below, or on our Facebook page, which you can view by clicking here.

Special thanks to The Dodo for sharing the story.  To see their article on what to do if you see a dog chained up outside in the cold, click here.

The post Neighbors Save Dog Locked Outdoors on 16th Floor of Building appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

If you were hoping to get the forecast in the Edmonton area last week, you might have had a difficult time – Ripple the rescue dog, who was visiting the studio, was far more interested in playing than in letting meteorologist Mike Sobel do his job!

The year-and-a-half-old mastiff mix was on set as part of an adoption advocacy segment from the Edmonton Humane Society.  Sobel held Ripple’s leash and made a valiant effort to broadcast the weather as the rambunctious dog made every effort to get his attention.

Ripple playfully chomped on his leash and finally got his way – Sobel was forced to give in and let him have the impromptu game of tug-of-war!

The post Weather Dog Totally Steals the Show! appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

Noreen Lucas had been asleep in her bed when the fire broke out.  She had been sick with pneumonia, and didn’t awaken right away.  Thankfully, Rex was nearby and got her out of bed.

“I was so comatose so when Rex woke me up, dragging me, I knew there was something wrong,” Lucas said.

When the dog pulled her into the hallway, she could see that the walls were engulfed in flames.  The house was becoming a massive inferno very quickly.  After taking a minute to realize what was going on, she got herself up off the floor and went to help the rest of the animal family members that were also in the house.

Lucas and Rex managed to get everyone out of the burning house alive, and uninjured.  There was another dog, and two cats in the home as well at the time.

The community has also come to the family’s rescue.  They put together donations, food and other things to help them in their time of need.  The family is very grateful for the help, but are really just glad no one was injured or worse.

The post Dog Saves Family Member’s Life From Fire on Christmas Eve appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.

One family in particular breeds Saint Bernard dogs…and they keep one from every litter. What does that add up to?

Am I in a dream? Is this a dream?

I’ve never wondered what it would be like to be surrounded by more than forty ginormous, heavily panting dogs…but now I know!

The post This Is What It’s Like To Walk Through The Woods With 42 Hulking Saint Bernards appeared first on ILoveDogsAndPuppies.