A two-year public education campaign is expected to begin later this year in a City of Greater Sudbury effort to prevent dog bites, focusing on keeping dogs leashed.
During this week’s meeting, the city’s elected officials unanimously approved the education campaign’s expense of up to $30,000 annually.
“Communication is key to everything and being proactive ahead of it, so if people say ‘I didn’t know,’ well, it’s not true, you did know,” Ward 12 Coun. Joscelyne Landry-Altmann said.
“It’s a proactive, progressive step in informing our population.”
The education campaign joins various other measures city council ratified this week, including banning vicious/dangerous dogs from dog parks, increasing fines and having staff conduct annual inspections of problem dogs.
Ward 5 Coun. Mike Parent sparked the discussion last year when he requested a municipal report on dog attacks, which was tabled earlier this month.
City animal care and control bylaw co-ordinator Melissa Laalo drafted the report alongside a list of recommendations city council unanimously approved.
Alongside taking local action, the city has been asked to petition the province to speed up proceedings under the Dog Owners’ Liability Act (DOLA). Dogs under review are held at a municipal shelter for “up to a year or more” while proceedings take place, Laalo said.
An increase in complaints regarding vicious dogs inspired Parent’s initial request and this month’s response by city council.
In 2017, the city received 2,116 animal-related calls, which grew to 4,169 by 2023. Of these calls, vicious dog complaints grew from 144 to 358 per year. Last year, there were 148 vicious dog complaints involving a threat or attack on an animal, while 181 were on people.
However, Laalo clarified earlier this month that not all of these represent cases involving injuries, and that the number of dogs classified as vicious has remained consistently between three and five per year, with 12 estimated to be alive in Greater Sudbury currently.
The city’s bylaw manager determines when a dog is classified as vicious, which happens when an attack is unprovoked or where the severity of the attacks warrants concern for public safety, Laalo’s report said.
The public education campaign will be targeted to “change public behaviour and increase awareness of leashing requirements.”
Most dog bites take place when one or more dogs are off-leash.
The campaign may include advertising on radio and other digital platforms, transit shelters and digital screen advertising space, alongside sponsored media and a “comprehensive bilingual strategy.”
The education campaign was originally slated to come up as a business case for 2025 budget deliberations in December, but Ward 1 Coun. Mark Signoretti pulled it during this week’s meeting for earlier adoption, with its associated funding coming from municipal reserves.
Subsequent years’ funding beyond 2025 will depend on a business case prepared for 2026 budget deliberations.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.