Lynda Knight will be in court today, Aug. 22, to defend her right to keep her pet in Jasper.
Knight, who鈥檚 had her Vietnamese pot-bellied pig, Piglet, since October, was given a $100 provincial ticket from the municipal bylaw department July 28. The ticket is for being in possession of livestock contrary to the municipality鈥檚 domestic animal bylaw.
As it stands, Bylaw 126 reads: 鈥淣o person shall keep in the town any livestock other than for the purpose of attending a rodeo in the town sanctioned by the Canadian Rodeo Association and in a location approved by the municipal manager.鈥� It also has a provision for circuses and horses used as part of a business.
But Knight is arguing that pot-bellied pigs aren鈥檛 livestock, as livestock, by definition, are animals raised to produce food, fibre or labour, and pot-bellied pigs aren鈥檛 used for any of those purposes.
For proof, Knight points to the Department of Agriculture, which classifies pot-bellied pigs as pets, along with dogs, cats, guinea pigs, finches and budgies.
鈥淚n recent months I鈥檝e seen lots of pot-bellied pig visitors staying in our hotels, campgrounds and walking down main street, so obviously they鈥檙e seen as pets.
鈥淚 think that this is the way of the future. People have different pets and pot-bellied pigs are increasingly popular as pets because that鈥檚 what they are,鈥� she said.
But, according to the municipality, 鈥渁 pig is a pig is a pig,鈥� said Peter Waterworth, chief administrative officer, and so 鈥渢he bylaw is intended to catch just this type of situation.鈥�
Keeping Piglet in Jasper is against the law, said Dave Osborne, licensing and enforcement manager for the municipality, so now the matter will appear before a judge who will determine guilt or innocence. Unless Knight pleas guilty today, that verdict won鈥檛 come for a number of weeks or months, as after a not guilty plea, a trial date is set.
Following the proceedings, if the judge finds Knight guilty, she will have to give Piglet to a shelter or home outside of Jasper.
鈥淭here鈥檚 shelters full of animals and here an animal exists in a safe and beautiful home and is well loved and cared for, do we really want to put an animal like that in a shelter?鈥� she asks, noting that Piglet is quieter than a dog and less invasive than a cat.
On the other hand, if Knight is found innocent, then Osborne will present the judgement to council, who will review the bylaw and likely rewrite it to make it more definitive.
According to a letter addressed to Knight from Mayor Richard Ireland, 鈥渋n general discussion among councillors (at which all but one councillor was present) all were supportive of the existing wording and intent of the bylaw and of the interpretation of the relevant section by Municipal Bylaw Enforcement officers.鈥�
Ireland goes on to write that councillors are also satisfied with the actions taken by the bylaw department, and there are no council members willing to put a motion forward to amend the domestic animal bylaw.
If there had been council support for an amendment, after second reading, the bylaw would have gone to Parks Canada for certification鈥攁s is done with all bylaws.
鈥淭hat would never happen,鈥� said Waterworth of Parks certification.
Since the bylaw department became aware of Piglet in June, Knight has been gauging public sentiment. So far her petition has more than 300 signatures.
She also points to a comment thread on the Jasper Buy, Sell and Trade as proof that a large number of community members support Piglet staying in town. On that thread were more than 120 likes and 60 comments, including some from Hinton residents who own pot-bellied pigs themselves.
In Hinton, there are similar bylaws in place for pets, but the bylaw department is willing to consider pets that fall outside the usual dogs and cats on a case by case basis.
So if someone wants a pot-bellied pig, they can fill out an application and that application will be considered by the department, said Benita Smit, a bylaw officer in the community.
Smit noted, though, that because Hinton isn鈥檛 in a national park, like Jasper, it doesn鈥檛 fall under such strict laws. 鈥淪o we have the grey area to consider applications.鈥�
Nicole Veerman
[email protected]
