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A pit bull attack outside a seniors' centre in Ottawa sent two men to the hospital Saturday night with bite wounds and scratches to both their arms and legs. The owner now faces over $1,600 in fines, but one of the attacked men claims the city's response isn't enough.
"I'm in fairly good shape and a hockey player, so I was able to battle with the dog by repositioning myself and either kicking it or punching it on each of his lunges at me," said Bruce McConville, a 59-year-old who was attacked. Fighting a dog was not something he expected to do on a Saturday evening.
On June 11, McConville's night was scheduled with a seniors' dance — one he regularly organizes at a Vanier senior's centre, Centre Pauline-Charron.
At around 10: 30 p.m., after the dance ended, McConville's evening took a sharp turn. One of the dance attendees, Robert Pagé, rushed back to the seniors' centre with deep bite wounds to his forearms and said he had just been attacked by an off-leash pit bull.
Ottawa police, paramedics and by-law services arrived shortly after the attack. Pagé drove himself to Montfort Hospital, and police located the owners.
But the night was far from over.
"Frontline police officers attended the area and were able to locate the person in charge of the dog," the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) said in an emailed statement.
"The guardian informed us that the dog had now returned home, and the officers followed the guardian to her residence," OPS said. "When she opened the door, the dog ran past her and escaped into the street where he attacked and bit another man."
McConville said he was under the impression that the dog had been secured inside the owner's apartment when he saw it running at an elderly woman outside of Pauline-Charron.
"I just saw the dog leap between the shoulders of two officers over the [balcony] railing, which is ground-floor level," McConville said. "And as soon as it hit the ground, it was making a beeline straight for an elderly lady that was outside the door."
McConville said he kicked the dog before it reached the woman. But it then turned its attention to him. When the dog would lunge, McConville would kick. When the dog would snap, McConville would punch.
"At one point, I was knocked to the ground, and I was wrestling with it as it tried to lunge for my throat."
According to McConville, police tasered the dog, but it seemed unphased. "It just kept galloping past after it was hit," he said.
OPS said the "conducted energy weapons" were used to protect the public and officers from injury and that they were successful.
"The dog ran back into the residence where he was secured. Ottawa By-Law services attended and continued with the investigation and laid applicable charges," OPS said.
McConville and Pagé's injuries after the attack. Courtesy of Bruce McConville
McConville sustained four soft-tissue bite wounds and a large knee abrasion. None of his wounds were life-threatening.
Ottawa Paramedic Services said they got a call about the dog bite in Vanier around 10:30 p.m., and paramedics were on the scene in about five minutes.
"We had a male in his 50s who was injured by a dog," said Marc-Antoine Deschamps, superintendent-public information for the Ottawa Paramedic Service. "He sustained soft tissue injuries — so basically skin tears and things like that, and his injuries are not life-threatening."
At around 10:50 p.m., McConville was taken to a hospital where he said he stayed until around 10:30 a.m. the next morning.
The owner received over $1,600 in fines, but McConville says it's not enough
The owner of the pit bull was given an order to muzzle the dog when the City of Ottawa By-law and Regulatory Services arrived on the scene, shortly after 10:30 p.m.
Under the City of Ottawa's Animal Care and Control By-law, the owner received five charges. The charges include two instances of failing to ensure a dog does not bite or attack a person without provocation, two instances of failing to keep a dog on a leash and under control, and failing to register a dog.
As a result of the charges, the owner was given $1,605 in fines.
The city's law on animal care and control is "the primary tool to govern dogs of all breeds," said Tania McCumber, acting director of By-law and Regulatory Services, in an emailed statement. "Pet owners should be aware of their responsibilities under this by-law and must register their animals accordingly. This includes all types of pit bulls or pit bull mixes."
Charges can also be laid under the Dog Owners’ Liability Act, which has a specific requirement for pit bull dogs. For a single offence, owners can be given up to $10,000 in fines or face six months of imprisonment.
"If the owner of a vicious dog is found to have contravened a provision of DOLA, or their dog has bitten, attacked or posed a menace to public safety, a mandatory destruction order may be issued by the Court," said McCumber.
But McConville, who lives in Vanier, said he often sees the dog roaming unrestrained. McConville fears that the owners won't respect the muzzle order, and it will continue to run free. He said he was told that any further action could take weeks or months. When asked about orders given, the city declined to comment further, saying the incident is currently under investigation.
"My interest is not putting the dog down — that's not my decision," said McConville. "My interest is in keeping the community safe."
Ottawa sees roughly 500 dog complaints each year
So far, there have been 289 reports of dog aggression and/or attacks made this year, according to data collected by the City of Ottawa. In comparison, there was a total of 624 reports made last year and 537 reports made in 2020. However, the city noted that the data may include duplicate reports.
"All reports of dog bites/attacks, regardless of confirmation that a bite/attack occurred, or its severity, are captured in the statistics," said McCumber. "These reports also include cases of scratches, bruises, lunges, etc., as well as incidents involving aggression towards other animals and towards people.”
The city added that dog-related complaints can be made by calling By-law and Regulatory Services at 311 or 911 for an attack in progress.
Moving forward, McConville said he will keep organizing events at the seniors' centre. He said he met with Rideau-Vanier ward councillor, Mathieu Fleury, to further discuss the topic.
Talks about altering Ontario's pit bull laws, which ban the dogs, came into sharp focus when Ford's provincial government proposed potential changes to the ban last fall. In November, a 13-year-old was bitten at a Toronto taekwondo studio, and shortly after the incident, Ford said the changes wouldn't be carried through.
It is important to evaluate and treat each dog as an individual, no matter its breed. To learn more about the physical and behavioural traits and history of pit bulls, we encourage you to consult this breed study by the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare as well as this statement from the ASPCA.