“It happened to me today — might be somebody else the next day,” said Kwasi Adu, who was bitten by a roaming dog at a bus stop last year.
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Angela McLean’s son was attacked by a dog running loose in their Rosemont neighbourhood last year.
“He was seven at the time and the dog pinned him against a truck and was biting his ankles,” McLean told the Leader-Post. “And now, my children are afraid to play in their own yard. They’re afraid to go outside.”
It was an extreme escalation to a problem she says she and many others on her crescent have been having for several years, with a neighbour’s dogs chronically escaping from their property.
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Kwasi Adu also says he feels anxious outside when passing leashed dogs on the street after he was bitten multiple times by a loose dog while waiting at a downtown bus stop last year.
“It just was mauling me, all over the place, and I was struggling and had nobody to help me,” he said. “It was traumatizing. If it had been a minor, they would have sustained some serious damage, or maybe even died.”
Both McLean’s son and Adu say that the city’s bylaws to enforce consequences after such attacks are too lax and in the interest of public safety, need to be changed.
“City hall, the Humane Society and police are all trying to address things, but there’s nothing they can do when they’re hampered by no bylaws,” said McLean.
Coun. Shanon Zachidniak (Ward 8) says McLean and Adu are among several residents who have raised the issue to her. She brought it to city council Wednesday, to discuss.
She crafted a motion, with the help of former Ward 7 councillor Terina Nelson, asking administration to review the city’s Animal Bylaw and consider how it can be updated to better protect both people and animals.
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City council passed the motion in a 10-0 vote in favour, with an exploratory report based on public consultations to determine needed changes to come back to council by the end of 2025.
“If our bylaws can’t keep residents safe, then honestly, what’s the point of them?” said Zachidniak, in an interview with Leader-Post before Wednesday’s meeting. “Knowing our bylaw isn’t functioning properly, I think we need to address that as quickly as we can.”
The intent is to modernize the Animal Bylaw, which hasn’t had a significant update since 2011, without overstepping into provincial jurisdiction regulating animal welfare, said Zachidniak.
She wants to take a “comprehensive look” at regulations regarding all animals — though the recent number of incidents with aggressive or at-large dogs in the city does raise alarm.
There have been at least two dog attacks in Regina this year that resulted in police laying charges and animals being seized. However, not all encounters, including the ones each McLean’s son and Adu had, have that outcome.
The dogs involved in those attacks were not seized nor were the owners penalized, McLean and Adu said.
McLean said the dog that bit her son still lives in her neighbourhood and its owner has not been required to fence the yard or tether the animal.
She’s been told bylaw officers don’t have the power to enforce that kind of directive, and instead can only impose fines, which range from $100 to $300 — even in her situation and when other neighbours on her crescent have also been attacked by the same dog as her son.
“It’s not safe for the dogs and it’s not safe for the community,” McLean said. “It was predictable and preventable, but it still happened and it’s going to happen again if nothing is done.”
Lisa Koch, director of the Regina Humane Society which manages animal control services, told city council on Wednesday that her organization strongly agrees Regina needs to update its laws.
She said calls about dog attacks are up by 52 per cent in 2024 compared to 2023, with 186 dog bites reported to the city last year. The Humane Society believes outlining best practices on things like tethering and dog hoarding might reduce the levels of aggression.
“The aim is to provide proactive animal welfare and ensure owners are responsible for their animals,” Koch said.
Regina police and the Saskatchewan Health Authority have also expressed support of the initiative, Zachidniak said.
When Adu was attacked downtown, he was knocked down and hit his head. He has since been diagnosed with occipital neuralgia, a rare migraine disorder. He believes injuries he incurred when he fell could be the cause.
“Once in a while, it pops up to me again, like a horror movie,” he said. “And I’m thinking, it happened to me today — might be somebody else the next day.”
He wants to see both more prevention and more enforcement, including requirements for aggressive dogs to be muzzled and have insurance.
The existing bylaw does include a list of restrictions for animals deemed “dangerous,” but that designation has to be issued by a judge in a court hearing.
Koch confirmed as well that Regina’s animal control officers have no authority under the city’s bylaw to seize animals for any reason, including neglect or aggression, and can only do so under the provincial Animal Protection Act if a warrant has been issued by a judge.
Zachidniak said one thing Regina could do is introduce a temporary distinction that could be applied while legal charges are in process, to protect both the public and the animals the interim.
She also pointed to a 2022 update of Winnipeg’s bylaws as a model for Regina to consider emulating. Most notably, Winnipeg added restrictions to how long a dog could be kept outside in extreme weather or without supervision.
“If we’re not properly taking care of animals, that will have a very negative impact on our residents,” she said. “I’m passionate about both. I want our residents to be safe and I want our animals to be safe.”
lkurz@postmedia.com
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