Sun, November 19, 2006
Day to shoot dogs
Strays are culled once a year on native reserves in Manitoba where two tots were killed by roaming animals

By BROOKES MERRITT, EDMONTON SUN

An annual "dog shoot" would help keep dog packs on native reserves from killing any more helpless children, says an animal welfare worker in Manitoba.

Albertans were horrified this week after five-year-old Lance Ribbonleg was killed by a pack of stray dogs at the North Tallcree First Nation's reserve near Fort Vermilion.

It's also a serious issue in Manitoba, where two native tots were killed by dogs in separate incidents last summer. Some communities there have "dog shoot days," in which stray dogs are culled.

"The solution is to cull the dog population, and provide spay and neuter services to native communities at the same time," Vicki Burns, executive director of the Winnipeg Humane Society, told the Sun yesterday.

A two-year-old boy was mauled at that province's Hollow Water First Nation in July, and a three-year-old boy met the same fate on the Sayisi First Nation in June.

Burns is lobbying the Manitoba government to bring better vet services to native communities in her province.

She dismissed critics of canine culls because most protesters "can't relate to a reserve environment.

"It's a poor life for many dogs, and this has become a very serious human safety issue."

Sources estimate some 50 dogs roam the Tallcree reserve, which has a human population of only a few hundred.

Wendy Quist runs the veterinary clinic closest to the area, about 30 km away in Fort Vermillion. She says few people from the reserve get their dogs fixed.

"It's a mindset, dogs don't have the same value here. And at $180 to $220, many can't afford (to get them fixed)."

As a result, Quist said litters of up to 12 puppies are routinely born under Tallcree homes. No one claims responsibility for them, and they grow up wild, forming packs.

"It's a matter of education," Quist said, adding she's spoken with the Alberta Humane Society about programs to bring temporary vet services onto the reserve.

The society was unavailable for comment yesterday.

Alberta Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development spokesman Jason Gariepy said the province hasn't been approached by native groups for help dealing with feral dogs.

"But if we were invited to partner with them to help set up (spay and neuter) services, that's something we'd consider."

Indian Association of Alberta president Mel Buffalo said Hobbema brought in strict rules to bring their wild dog population under control.

"We had a mauling death about five years ago," he said. "Wild dogs are a big problem on native reserves in Alberta."

In 1999 a five-year-old was mauled by starving dogs on Alberta's Little Red River Cree Nation.
Got a News Tip?