Munchie

What Can I Do To Save Other Innocent Dogs From The Fate Suffered By Munchie

1 / Act as a "Voice in Remembrance of Munchie" by expressing your outrage to his unjustly end and the system that condones the process: Bill 132....E -Mails / Letters etc. should be directed to: Toronto Animal Services Manager, Mary Lou Leiher at mleiher@toronto.ca and
Ontario's Attorney General, Chris Bentley at cbentley.mpp@liberal.ola.org

2 / Continue to cast your Vote For Munchie's Cause...even though he's been taken from us in body..."Munchie's Spirit is Very Much Alive and Well in All of Our Hearts""...every single vote helps in making a difference for the future.(see below)

3/ Express your concern regarding Munchie's lonely suffering and wrongful death with "Personalized On Screen Comments" located below.

4 / Encourage your family, friends and business associates to also "Band Together" to protect The Rights Of All Animals. .

5 / Munchies's owners, 2 young girls attending Ryerson University, have already been charged over $15,000.00 in legal costs for exercising their rights to protect their loving pal, Munchie.
It's no surprise that legal fees can skyrocket when challenging "The System," City Hall, but justice should not have been sacrificed as a servant of money...these girls still need your help more than ever now...both spiritually and financially.

A special "Remember Munchie" Trust Fund has been established through TD Canada Trust bank for all of us to participate in offering assistance in Munchie's name...

Munchie's Legal Fund
Account: 6252942
TD Branch: 1672

BEHAVIOUR ASSESSMENT - MUNCHIE

BEHAVIOUR ASSESSMENT - MUNCHIE

On November 8, 2007 my associate Calvin Thompson and I conducted an assessment of Munchie in Toronto. The Assessment started at approximately 11:45 am and lasted approximately one hour and ten minutes. The location of the assessment was determined by the Toronto Animal Services and is inadequate for the purpose of Behaviour Assessment. It does not afford the appropriate space for normal interaction and as such, places undue stress on the dog. Even under less optimum conditions, Munchie did not display aggressive behaviour during the entire Assessment.

Initial observations of Munchie showed a dog under extremely high stress. His pupils were dilated and he displayed "Whale Eye" when looking up at us. His coat is not in good condition; it is dull and brittle with patches missing on several locations. According to shelter manager, Mary Lou Leiher, the diet has been changed to a gastric one in order to try improve the skin and coat condition. It was unknown if the condition existed prior to the dog's impoundment.

He is quite dehydraed. The dehydration is really apparent on the DVD where Calvin is testing the looseness of the skin at the back of the neck. When held and slightly twisted, the skin sticks together rather than immediately releasing and retracting against the muscle tissue. The dehydration is a symptom of prolonged stress as there is water readiy available to the dog. The dryness is also readily apparent indicated by the abundance of dandruff and lack of shine or gloss to the coat.

At the outset of the Assessment Munchie exhibited arousal behaviour by barking repetitively. The pitch was high which is associated with stress / anxiety and defensive behaviour. He did not charge the door and in fact shifted away from the door with elbows slightly bent. Within a few minutes he was quiet and responding to Calvin's voice in a calm manner. He also felt safe enough to approach and take a food treat. The initial interaction involved both Calvin and myself alternating our approach to the door of the kennel. It was apparent that Munchie was more comfortable with Calvin than myself at the outset. His body was less tense and he reacted more quickly to verbal cues.

When I approached to take pictures, he watched cautiously but demonstrated no aroused or aggressive behaviour. He was very wary of hand motions and became more tense on the occasions when I gave the visual signal for "Sit". This is possibly because he has not been trained to hand signals but more likely due to past experience. According to his owner, Angela, she employed a member of Bark Busters to stop Munchie from jumping up on her and guests. The technique taught was to use a loud verbal exclamation "Bah!" as an interrupter followed by throwing a pillow at the dog. This is not a technique that I would recommend. While it may suppress the behaviour, it does nothing to teach the dog the appropriate required behaviour, and it makes the dog hand shy and cautious about personal space.

Calvin and I used food rewards with Munchie to establish several things:
Did he trust us enough to come into our personal space;
To help determine Munchie's potential for training and/or behaviour modifiction;
To induce as much movement in the body as possible as he demonstrated extreme faint/freeze behaviour.

In the first part of the Assessment, Munchie often displayed a freeze response. When Calvin or I waited without increasing the threat he would then have appeasement and displacement behaviours - paw lifting, lip licking and blinking. This is the way a canine attempts to reduce what it perceives to be a potential threat. A dog will often lift its front paw when the owner leans over or crowds it. It is a dog's way of requesting the owner to move away.

After about twenty minutes, Munchie was showing a more relaxed body and curiosity, particularly with Calvin. Often dogs are more comfortable with women than men, but in Munchie's case, the majority of his physical exercise and activities he enjoys have been with Sheila and/or Angela's brother. According to his owner, Munchie really enjoyed his walks and Sheila said that "he liked her brother better than her".

At this point, Calvin loped a leash around Munchie's neck and led him outside the kennel into the aisle between the kennel rows. Munchie's body began to relax more with the continued movement. When the camera operator was moving the camera to follow Munchie, it slipped and scraped against the side of the kennel. Munchie showed no adverse reaction. Many dogs would have startled at this, but he was simply curiouis.

Munchie was returned to his kennel a few times, and although he was reluctant to return he accepted the steady pressure, and even a few body blocks at the entrance when he tried to go past Calvin. Some dogs would react to a body block with frustration which could result in a bite.

As the Assessment continued and Munchie had more opportunity to move, he became more animated and began to wag his tail in what would be considered a "friendly" manner. It was forty minutes before the first full body shake, which indicated a full relaxation at that moment; it is the dog "shaking off" the tension in the muscles.

Munchie allowed touching and stroking and again showed more desire to be touched and interact with Calvin, but remained calm and non-reactive when I touched him as well. Calvin and I did the measuring as Mary Lou Leiher indicated that she was not comfortable with allowing Mike to interact physically with Munchie. Calvin held him by the collar while I held the measuring tape against his body for Mike to record his height. At no time did he struggle against the restraint, and showed no adverse reaction to my standing over him with the tape being held against his side.

When Mike stood taking pictures, he showed no aggressive behaviour only curiosity, and seemed to relax even more when Mike was singing to him.

During this Assessment, I found Munchie to demonstrate behaviour associated with prolonged stress but no aggressive behaviour. He showed an interest in learning, and if given the opportunity to be trained with positive reinforcement methods, rather than suppression, both Calvin and I feel strongly that he would learn quickly. With appropriate training and management, this dog would not present a threat to public safety. This caveat applies to all dogs.

Cheryl Smith
Senior Animal Behaviourist
Forever Friends
Ottawa, Ontario
Tel: 613-727-4335
web: http://www.foreverfriendsdogtraining.ca/

Labrador Cross or Pit Bull? You Be The Judge

MUNCHIE: LABRADOR CROSS OR “PIT BULL”? YOU BE THE JUDGE …

Who is “Munchie” ?
He’s a 3 year old, neutered, chocolate coloured, short coated male dog,
approximately 21 ½ - 22½ inches tall.

In order to classify Munchie as a “pit bull” he must exhibit the primary and unique characteristics that are described in the written Canadian Kennel Club, American Kennel Club, United Kennel Club or ADBA standards of the three purebred banned breeds – that is, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, an American Staffordshire Terrier or an American Pit Bull Terrier.) (It should be noted that the American Pit Bull Terrier is not a Canadian Kennel Club or American Kennel Club recognized breed. It is registered through two American registries, the United Kennel Club and the American Dog Breeders Association. However, as the UKC permits American Staffordshire Terriers to be registered as “American Pit Bull Terriers”, the written standards are effectively the same.)

Munchie compared to the standard for the Staffordshire Bull Terrier:

At 21½ - 22 inches, he is significantly taller than the height requirement for a male Staffordshire Bull (14 – 16 inches) and at approximately 51 pounds (weighed by his veterinarian August 07) higher than the required weight of a male Staffie.
(The maximum weight is 33 ½ pounds for male Staffordshire Bull Terriers.)

Munchie compared to the standard for the American Staffordshire Terrier:

A male American Staffordshire Terrier is required to be no more than 19 inches. Munchie is beyond the standard, at about 22 inches in height. Weight is not mentioned but the standard requires a dog to “be stocky, not long-legged or racy in outline”. Munchie is not stocky, he taller, long legged and racy (fine boned). His muscles do not bulge over the bone, but are flat.

Munchie compared to the standard for the American Pit Bull Terrier:

The American Pit Bull standard states that the “desirable weight for a mature male in good condition is between 35 and 60 pounds”. Although the standard does not mention height, it requires a “medium-sized, solidly built, short-coated dog with smooth, well-defined musculature. Never fine-boned and rangy”. As the American Pit Bull and American Staffordshire Terrier is considered the same breed by the registration authority, the UKC, the height limits for the American Staffordshire would be acceptable. Again, Munchie is not solidly built, he has flat musculature and is too tall to be considered “medium sized”.

Munchie compared to the standard of the Labrador Retriever:

Although Munchie is a mongrel, there is a statistical likelihood that he has Labrador Retriever in his genetic background, as the Labrador is the most popular of all breeds in Canada. The CKC standard calls for showdog Labradors to be 22½ - 24 ¼ inches at the shoulder. However, the field Labrador (which is slimmer and lighter in bone structure than its “conformation showdog” counterpart) is the type of Lab that is most generally found among the general population. In temperament, like all of the sporting breeds, Labradors are amenable, tractable and exhibit a willingness to please, (a characteristic I observed in Munchie also).

Munchie bears a remarkable resemblance to the purebred chocolate Labrador Retriever known as “Buddy”, owned by U.S. President Bill Clinton.

This is not to say that Munchie is a purebred Labrador. He is simply a mongrel who has a significant amount of this breed in his genetic background, as he is the correct size, colour, shape and exhibits some of the unique characteristics of the Lab, particularly the head (including shape of skull, eye colour, ear shape, length of muzzle).

Munchie’s Head:
The head of a dog is its most unique characteristic. This is why, by only seeing the head, we can easily distinguish between a Pug, a Boxer, a Doberman Pincher, a Great Dane or an American Staffordshire Terrier, even though all of these are short haired canines.

Munchie’s head has the same shape and planes as a purebred Chocolate Labrador Retriever

Munchie’s Body:
At approximately 22 inches in height and weighing 51 pounds Munchie’s body is the same size and overall shape as an athletic field type Labrador, which is bred to run. He does not have the heavy, stocky, rounded musculature of the banned “pit bull” breeds.

Munchie’s shape and height are similar to those of a purebred Chocolate Labrador Retreiver.

Statistical possibilities:
A recent survey found that 637,000 puppies were born in Canada in 2006. Of these, It is estimated that more than 120,000 are purebred dogs and registered either with the CKC, AKC or UKC. (66, 532 dogs registered by the CKC, approximately 50,000 Canadian dogs registered with the AKC and approximately 10,000 registered with the UKC).

This represents just under 20% of all dogs born in Canada. The other 80% are either unregistered purebreds, crossbreds, or mongrels. Like Munchie.

Of the purebreds, Labrador Retrievers are Canada’s most popular breed. They always lead the registration statistics. In the past three years, more than 28,000 Labradors were registered with the Canadian Kennel Club alone. (9839 in 2004, 9463 in 2005, 8749 in 2006).

In addition, 123,760 Labradors were registered with the American Kennel Club in 2006. (Compare this to the meager 1539 American Staffordshire Terriers and 918 Staffordshire Bull Terriers registered by the AKC in 2006).

Of the 80% of dogs that are unregistered, some are purebreds that the breeders choose not to register with a registration authority. The hunting dogs, particularly Labradors, who are more popular in the field as they are in the conformation show ring, do not require registration papers to do a day’s hunting. It is estimated that there may be twice as many non registered Labradors as registered Labradors. That would put almost 30,000 Labradors on the ground each year, and, considering the average lifetime of the dog to be 10 years, there may be 300,000 Labrador Retrievers currently residing in Canada.

No wonder so many mongrels resemble Labradors. No wonder so many dogs in the animal shelters are referred to as “Lab cross”. Statistically, Labs are the #1 breed in Canada. They are thus statistically more likely to populate the mixed breeds with their genetics than any other purebred breed.

In conclusion:

Munchie is a not a purebred Labrador Retriever. He is simply a mongrel who has a majority of this breed in his genetic background, because he is the correct size, shape, colour and exhibits some of the unique characteristics of the “field type” Lab.

Also, although Munchie is a mongrel, a dog with a mixed heritage, there are compelling statistics that support the assertion that he has Labrador in his genetic background.

It is noteworthy that the Labrador Retriever is Canada’s most popular breed, not only as a family pet but as a hunting companion, and that there are literally thousands of mongrels across this country who have Labrador in their genetic background. The field Labrador (which is slimmer and lighter in bone structure and than its heavier “conformation showdog” counterpart) is the type of Lab that is most generally found among the general population.

Have you made up your mind?

Munchie has been designated a “pit bull”, by Toronto Animal Services.
Now that you understand the characteristics of the “banned” breeds and those of Munchie…

Would you describe Munchie as a “pit bull” or a Labrador? And does Munchie deserve to die?

Munchie - Put To Death

In The Name of Munchie

REMEMBERING MUNCHIE

Death Sentence

Should Munchie Be Spared?

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BEHAVIOUR ASSESSMENT - MUNCHIE

Labrador Cross or Pit Bull? You Be The Judge