The Town of Ste. Anne is upholding a bylaw which restricts the ownership of pit bulls.

“It was a request from one of our residents,” explains Mayor Richard Pelletier, “and it was brought to the Town’s attention that the neighbour complained of being scared.”

Pelletier says Council contacted the dog owner to make him aware of the bylaw, so he decided to apply for its amendment.

Once overruled, he applied for special permission and made a number of compromises in hopes of keeping his pet. “He’s willing to make an effort,” says Pelletier, “by walking the dog outside of town and by using a muzzle.”

The mayor admits to being a dog owner and having a pit bull in the past, so he understands what “that kind of dog is all about, and how much you can love a dog”. That being said, Council’s decisions must consider everyone’s safety.

Pelletier says the Town adopted the bylaw in 2008, but that the dog owner has only been living there since 2018.

“We have a friendly town that we want to keep that way,” he offers, “so we’ll definitely try the best we can to work with it."