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By Nicole Reis

Stray Dogs

Waterhen Lake First Nation faced with growing feral animal population

Jan 20, 2020 | 2:17 PM

Waterhen Lake First Nation is facing what members are calling a crisis with stray animals which can present a range of safety threats toward members in the community.

Dustin Ross Fiddler, a band councillor and youth development worker at Waterhen Lake First Nation told meadowlakeNOW, many First Nation communities in northwestern Saskatchewan face this issue.

“A lot of these stray animals are claimed by people but they’re not well taken care of and the moment you try to get the animals out of the community you have ‘pet owners’ who become upset with that,” Fiddler said.

He added the growing wild pet population present threats to the safety of children.

“The dogs themselves have health issues because they’re not taken care of. They’re malnourished and frostbitten, no doubt. They’re outside in -50 [Celsius] swells we’ve been having,” he said. “There is a constant threat of dogs gathering outside of schools and congregating while kids are having recess.”

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Fiddler said he received reports of aggressive dogs chasing kids outside of school grounds but no reports to date of kids being mauled by wild dogs.

“Most of these dogs are hungry; they have no shelter and it’s a pack mentality. It’s survival of the fittest for them,” he said.

Bylaw Enforcement

Band Chief Carol Bernard said homeowners are being contacted about their dogs wandering in the community.

“There is an old bylaw that has been in place but I don’t think too many people follow it,” she said.

Bernard added the community bylaw mandates pet owners to neuter and spay animals but couldn’t speak to issues before her time as chief.

“I guess we’ll have to go back and look at our bylaw and start enforcing it again. I think [the] community was trying to be proactive before there were any cases of children being mauled,” she said. “We have to continue working on keeping the population of dogs intact and we need to keep awareness to our community members on being good pet owners.”

Fiddler mentioned he raised the concern to council in November 2019. He noted councillors are considering putting money aside to create a temporary dog shelter or dog sanctuary. There are also talks on regulating ownership of pets on the First Nation in the next fiscal year.

“If you provide them with food, get them fixed and get them shelter where they wouldn’t have to be on guard, I’m sure dogs would be well enough to be re-homed pets,” he said.

Fiddler said the current bylaw notice procedure is not effective and the First Nation can’t rely on RCMP to enforce bylaws. He said he feels it shouldn’t be their job.

He added the band is exploring the possibility of training a Community Safety Officer. Yet, he said the $90,000 price tag of the training, resources and salary for the hire may require a provincial subsidy.

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nicole.reis@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @nicolereis7722