Montreal, CA – The city council of Montreal recently voted to ban ownership of pit bulls, causing outrage from dog lovers everywhere.

By: John Vibes

This article first appeared at FreeThoughtProject

The measure was voted by a 37-23 majority, in response to controversy caused by a random dog attack, which was an isolated incident.

Mayor Denis Coderre issued a statement after the vote saying, “My duty as mayor of Montreal is making sure I am working for all Montrealers. And I am there to make sure they feel safe and that they are safe.”

The new law will go into effect starting on October 3rd, and will effectively ban new ownership of any pit bull or “pit bull type dogs.”

The law says that the following breeds will be marked as “pit bull type dogs.”

-Staffordshire bull terriers.

-American pit bull terriers.

-American Staffordshire terriers.

-Any mix with these breeds.

-Any dog that presents characteristics of one of those breeds.

There is a court appeal planned by those who are objecting to the new measure.

The Montreal SPCA is among the groups pushing a court challenge of the law, saying that this could lead to the deaths of countless innocent animals.

“If the city of Montreal truly wanted to ensure public safety, it would not have forced a rushed adoption of controversial legislation which is unfair, unenforceable, and, most importantly, ineffective,” the agency said in a statement.

According to the CBC, those who now own a dog of those breeds in Montreal will have to acquire a special permit in order to keep their pet by Dec. 31, 2016. Those who fail to acquire a permit will have their dog taken and killed after the law goes into effect.

The fine print of the law even says that a pit bull must be automatically euthanized when their owner dies.

While there has traditionally been heavy debate over larger breeds of dogs, in recent years, the debate has died down. An overwhelming majority of people now agree that like humans, a dog’s temperament and personality are largely based on their upbringing and life experiences.

In fact, a recent study conducted at the University of Bristol’s School of Veterinary Sciences showed that a dog’s upbringing, not its breed, is responsible for aggression.

The study was published in the journal Applied Animal Behaviour Science in 2014, and was called Human directed aggression in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris): Occurrence in different contexts and risk factors.”

The study surveyed 14,000 dog owners in the U.K and found that the dog’s environment was entirely responsible for its aggressive tenancies.

This article first appeared at FreeThoughtProject