Pit Bulls

It Is not Illegal to Own a Pit Bull. I was told to read the Dogs Act of Anguilla. I learned a number of things I did not know before. I am telling you now, so you cannot say you did not know. First, the good news. It is not illegal to own a pit bull in Anguilla. Now, the bad news. Practically anything else you can do with one involves an offence, if the authorities can get the evidence.

Section 8 reads as follows:

Prohibition on breeding of pit bull terrier

8. (1) It is prohibited to breed or breed from, give, sell, exchange or gift, any dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier or other dog of a type which is bred for fighting or which has the characteristics of a dog so bred.

(2) Any person who contravenes this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of $4,500.

(3) Where a person is convicted of an offence under this section, the court may order the destruction of any dog in respect of which the offence was committed.

As I read that section, it means that it is an offence to breed a pit bull. It is illegal to give one away. It is illegal to sell one. If you do any of these things, you commit an offence the fine for which is up to $4,500.00.

Section 17 also applies to pit bulls. It reads as follows:

Ferocious dogs

17. (1) No person shall import any dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier or other ferocious dog and any dog so imported shall be seized and forfeited to the Crown, unless the person who imports the dog proves to the satisfaction of the Chief Veterinary Officer that the dog is not of a type known as the pit bull terrier or is not a ferocious dog.

(2) Every person who keeps a dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier or a ferocious dog shall have the dog spayed or castrated in a prescribed manner by an approved veterinary surgeon and produce the certificate to the Director when applying for a licence in respect of that dog.

(3) The keeper of a dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier or a ferocious dog shall not allow such a dog to be in a public place without being muzzled and kept on a lead or abandon it or allow it to stray.

(4) No person shall suffer to be at large any unmuzzled dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier or ferocious dog.

(5) Any person who contravenes the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of $10,000.

(6) Where a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (3) or (4), the court may order the destruction of any dog in respect of which the offence was committed.

As I read the above, it is an offence to import a pit bull. The importer commits an offence. It is an offence to allow it to be in a public place without wearing a muzzle. Every pit bull on Anguilla is required to be spayed. If you own a pit bull which is not spayed, you commit an offence. If you allow it to go into a public space without wearing a muzzle, you commit an offence. The penalty for any of these offences is a fine of up to $10,000.00.

This law is now several years old. That means that most pit bulls in Anguilla should be dying out from old age by now. Breeding is illegal. There can be no young pit bull on Anguilla which has not been involved in the commission of a crime.

Not that any of the above matters. The law is a joke when it comes to enforcing compliance. It is not an offence to receive a pit bull as a gift. It is not an offence to purchase a pit bull. It is not an offence to own a pit bull. Without me giving evidence, it is impossible for the authorities to prove who sold it to me, or gave it to me.

The one thing they can prove is that I own it or have it in my possession. That is the one thing that is not an offence.

Talk about a pointless, stupid, badly drafted, law!