Why Have Calgary Dog Attacks been Falling Despite Large Population Growth?

Excepts from an article entitled "Calgary Dog Attacks Fall to Lowest Levels in 25 Years', originally published on the Best Friends Network by By Lynn Ready. Photo by Clay Myers, Best Friends photographer.

Calgary, has significantly reduced dog bite incidents without enacting Breed Discriminatory Legislation (BDL) by establishing humane education programs,  and working closely with local animal rescue groups and various city/government departments to identify and penalize reckless owners. The main key to Calgary's success seems to be holding reckless owners and not dogs responsible.

“Everything goes back to responsible pet ownership,” says Bill Bruce, Director of Animal Bylaw Services in Calgary. In 2006 his team incorporated the bylaw which holds owners responsible for their dog’s behavior.

Calgary’s steady population growth (from 600,000 to 1.1 million between 1984 and 2008) and the absence of BDL, attacks by aggressive dogs are the lowest they've been in 25 years.

Humane Education Proves Effective
The city of Calgary organizes many public speaking programs to teach owners about their pets. These programs address how to properly socialize a dog and understand dog behaviors and needs.

The program has even been incorporated into school curriculums—both public and private. Programs/classes include bite prevention, dogs in society, laws in society, and a junior bylaw project in which kids identify problems in their community. 

Penalize Reckless Owners
Calgary law has a provision that prohibits leaving a dog unattended. An unattended dog tied to a sign or bicycle rack can become scared and bite out of fear. Also, dogs are never allowed to be chained or tethered outside the house unless someone is home. The city doesn’t treat dog bites lightly—a minor bite is a $350 fine and a serious offense is $1,500.


Investigating Problem Behaviors
Bruce says they spend a lot of time trying to “understand animals.” If a dog bites, for example, the team goes into the house and asks questions such as: Where did the dog come from? Are there children in the house? Where are the dog’s parents? What are the dog’s triggers?

Investigators even give the dog a medical exam to make sure it isn’t suffering from an underlying health problem. In addition, investigators will visit another home in the area with the same breed that hasn’t bitten and thoroughly investigate what that owner is doing right. Again, as Bruce says, it all comes down to responsible pet ownership. Incidentally, Bruce notes that one of their top “biters” is border collies and not “bully breeds.”

This type of investigation certainly entails high costs, but Bruce says those are all taken care of through licensing. Dog owners pay licensing fees (slightly higher rates for unaltered dogs) and those fees go toward the cost for the humane education and other services.


American Pit Bull Terriers on the Rise in Calgary
Brandy Campbell-Biggs, President of Pit Bulls for Life, a non-profit animal rescue operation geared specifically toward pit bulls, says targeting bad owners instead of stigmatizing entire breeds is the key to reducing aggressive incidents. She says that while dog bites have been going down, the number of pit bulls coming to the city has actually been increasing.