sAVING TREVOR                                                                                        2009

Trevor the dog will be permitted to live as long as the Humane Society Yukon can find an owner willing and able to follow a strict management plan for the rest of the animal’s life.

That decision was made today by Yukon Supreme Court Justice Ron Veale after he heard from the veterinarian hired to assess the German shepherd-Rottweiler cross.

“The owner has to be aware that the dog needs to be managed for life,” she said. “... This is a dog with a disability that will be with him for life .... If (the owners) lapse in their management, then Trevor will lapse.”

Trevor has been at the centre of a battle between the City of Whitehorse and the Humane Society since July, when the dog was brought to the city pound because he had bitten several people without provocation.

Trevor had been adopted from the Mae Bachur Animal Shelter (run by the Humane Society) a few months after being rescued from neglect by a bylaw officer.

Earlier this year, the city bylaw department received a report of an aggressive dog in the McIntyre subdivision area.

When the bylaw officer arrived at the house in question, he found Trevor in bad condition. A metal chain around the dog’s throat had been cinched so tightly for so long that it had grown into the soft skin at the back of his neck.

Trevor was taken to the Humane Society, where he was patched up and put up for adoption.

Trevor was soon sent to a new home, but in a matter of weeks, his new owners turned him over to the city.

The dog had bitten two people and lunged at several others, they reported. They took him to the pound instead of returning him to the Humane Society, they said, because they believed the shelter would simply adopt him out again without telling the next owners about his past behaviour.

The people who adopted Trevor said they were never told about his history of neglect; Humane Society representatives said they were fully informed.

Under the city’s Dangerous Animal bylaw, the city has the right to put down any animal proved to be a public safety risk, so Trevor was slated for execution.

His death was postponed by a Supreme Court action filed against the city by local animal rights activist Kevin Sinclair, who was later joined by the Humane Society.

The city believed Trevor posed a serious risk to public safety; the Humane Society countered that he simply needed the care and attention his original owner never gave him and that he would be a good dog.

With the guidance of Justice Randall Wong, the two sides devised a compromise whereby Trevor would be assessed by a dog-behaviour expert who would make the final verdict as to whether he was rehabilitatable.

But the report prepared by veterinarian Shelley Breadner did not specifically answer the question of rehabilitation. She said Trevor was a dangerous dog and had to be treated as such for the rest of his life.

She went on to outline the steps necessary to prevent him from being a risk to humans and other animals.

The city took this report to mean the dog could not be rehabilitated; the Humane Society saw it as a rehabilitation plan.

Veale, who inherited the file from Wong, decided the best way to deal with things was to simply call the vet and ask her to clarify.

Speaking via telephone in Supreme Court chambers this morning, Breadner explained her position.

Trevor perceives conflict where none exists, she said, and is at a constant risk to respond aggressively to people who approach him. If he has a vigilant and responsible owner who never lets down his or her guard, he can be kept under control.

“He is manageable, not curable,” she concluded. 

Something as innocuous as a change in schedule could result in Trevor snapping, Breadner said.

As representatives from the Humane Society pointed out last month, living at the shelter is stressful for any animal, and assessing Trevor in that environment gives an unfair impression of his behaviour.

The dog needs to be in a home where he feels safe and secure for six to eight weeks to see how he is responding to training, the vet agreed.

So now it is up to the Humane Society to find an owner for the troubled dog, one who is willing to live by strict orders on managing him.

Breadner will create a management plan for Trevor, the judge ruled, and the plan will become a court order.

”You’re in contempt of court if you don’t follow the court-ordered conditions,” Veale warned potential owners.

The city added it is “adamant” the owner and Trevor live within the boundaries of Whitehorse. The judge agreed.

“We’re not exporting our problems to other jurisdictions,” he said.

He also noted that whoever owns the dog will have to purchase liability insurance in case Trevor does bite again.

Speaking outside the courtroom today, Humane Society director Rachel Westfall said several people have already come forward saying they want to adopt Trevor.

She said the inside-Whitehorse restriction may become an issue “because you can’t require someone to live in the city forever.”

The two sides will meet again in court next Wednesday, at which time a potential owner may be present, Westfall said.

Until then, the dog will remain at the shelter.

Apart from the city’s legal costs, Whitehorse also picked up the bill for Breadner’s flight and accommodations in Whitehorse, Westfall said of the expenses in the case.

The Humane Society paid Breadner’s assessment fee and has not hired a lawyer. Westfall said donations of time and money have covered the cost of fighting for Trevor’s life. 

“It’s not something we can afford to do for every animal,” Westfall said. “(But) it was worth it; he’s a great dog.”