When Jade moved into her new property with her two dogs, she has no idea that a rotting fence paling would lead to her spending six months fighting to free her pet from the local pound.
On December 4, 2012 Jade’s two dogs broke through the fence of the home she’d moved into just three days earlier. Luckily, they didn’t end up on the street but in a neighbours yard, which could have meant the dogs were taken straight home. Unfortunately however this neighbour assumed calling the local ranger from Monash Council was the right thing to do, and both dogs went into the Burwood RSPCA pound.
One of Jade’s dogs, Kerser, was a few days later assessed as a restricted breed and Monash began the process of having him destroyed.
Jade had purchased Kerser from a friend back in April 2012, making him just 8 months old when he was seized. He was sold to her as an American Staffordshire terrier cross puppy. And Kerser was unregistered as Jade had delayed doing it, knowing she was soon moving into her own place.
Being unregistered, and being identified as a restricted breed, was an immediate death sentence for Kerser as any restricted breed dog that is found to be unregistered must be destroyed.
Distraught, Jade appealed this decision with Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
The April court case saw Kerser’s declaration upheld and he was formally declared a restricted breed. VCAT deputy president Heather Lambrick who upheld the council’s decision said;
“The overall impression of Kerser is one of compliance. He may not be a perfect example of a pit bull. However, such a dog probably does not exist”
Jade has since worked to take this decision to the Supreme Court, but this appeal has now been denied. Kerser will be killed.
Kerser is scheduled to be “humanly euthanised” Monday 3rd June at 5pm.
I am allowed to spend one hour with him and then I’ll be getting him cremated.
Please everybody we need to band together to stop BSL. Let’s change this so nobody else has to go through what I am.
Kerser, just a pup at not even 2 years old, who never hurt or threatened to hurt anybody and whose only crime was to escape from his brand new backyard will, thanks to Victorian dog laws, die in the kennels where he has spent the last six months away from his family.
Jade will pay for her paperwork oversight, not with a ‘first warning’ or a fine, but with her best friend being murdered by direction of the state government.
Shame Victoria. Shame.
Kerser’s Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FreeKerser)
This is horrible!! I hate BSL!!! Have you setup a petition on Change.org? Maybe if you get enough signatures the Supreme Court will reverse their denial of hearing your case.
there’s nothing you can do to save him right now? :(
This is horrible!!! I hate BSL!!! Have you setup a petition on change.org? Maybe if you get enough signatures, the Supreme Court will reverse their denial of hearing your case.
The law in Australia is absolutely ridiculous and inhumane. How cruel, particularly when the cruelty could be so easily avoided. The dog poses NO HARM to anyone or anything. The neighbor for calling the authorities instead of calling her neighbor to get her dogs should be fined because she is costing the city money by 1) reporting 1) have the state kill the dog. And the dog for better reasons than money should NOT be killed. This dog belongs home, its home.
When are we going to stop being stupid?
What is BSL? I love dogs, especially well behaved ones, and am obviously against killing pets, but we don’t have that term BSL in South Africa.
Nicole posted a good explanation further on (page 3 I think) I’ve just copied it to here
“1. For those that do not understand, BSL stands for Breed Specific Legislation. This is a law that came into full in September 2011, here in Victoria, Australia. Under this law any dog that is unregistered and has been reported to the authorities in any manner, can and will be seized. Once seized, the council Animal Control Officers do a visual check of the dog using nothing more than a measuring tape and a guide supplied by The Department of Primary Industries. This guide has a 22 point check on it and depending on how many boxes are ticked, the dog is deemed “restricted”. Therefore, this law is no longer about breed but simply looks.In Victoria, restricted = death.
2. DNA, Temperament tests, nor pedigree papers assist or are eligible as evidence.
3. Kerser had done nothing that ANY normal dog would not do, he is in a new territory and has a need and want to explore it. He harmed no one, he was threatening to no one, he was condemned simply because of looks.”
Stop putting this dog and others like him to sleep for no reason
I am appalled at the callousness of the syhelp juststem . I do wish there was something more than writing my thoughts down to help !! All dogs are beautiful & loving. It’s HUMANS who make them mean !! :( I am sorry for your eminent loss & truly wish I could do more….
You people need to leave these dogs alone. You are so quick to put dogs down. What is wrong with you
people? Change laws and everything pertaining to KILLING these DOGS. Focus on other more serious
issues. This is so sad and should not be where you have to euthinize this dog. Your shelter needs to be
investigated.
This is an asinine policy. Kerser has hurt no one yet he is to die because he’s been judged to be a restricted breed. It hasn’t been that long ago that Aborigenes were gien second class citizenship based on their “breed”. I would have thought that out-dated policy would have taught you something about the evils of discrimination but obviously, I’m wrong. You’ve learned nothing. Dogs are no more alike than people are. Does every white human in Australia have the same personality? Does every white human behave the same predictable way? Neither do dogs.
You are treating these dogs the same way that the British courts treated your ancestors. If you were judged guilty, circumstances, including real guilt or innocence, meant nothing. This is the same as the policy you are following with these dogs. They are guilty no matter the circumstances.
It is utterly inhumane to take away a life, that too a innocent’s, which you have not given, nor can you ever give. The baby (dog in this case) is so innocent that hearing his death sentence leaves only our heart to cry, cause eyes and ears cannot believe what they are seeing/hearing. When someone (Jade) is taking the responsibility for this innocent baby, why the state cannot release the baby and give a deadline to the owner to complete the required documentations. We may keep quite after a while saying…… ‘oh! after all it is a dog’s life’.. But heck no! Even the dog has the right to live it’s full life granted by God. We let the men murderers, rapists go free after stupid trials in the courts, but just that a dog cannot speak the human language we take upper hand in ending his/her life. Let’s make this a humane society and let all creatures including dogs and mankind coexist peacefully. I wish there was miracle and I could take Kerser with me. May God grant wisdom. Godbless all.
this is so wrong..murdering any pet because of its Breed is insanity and needs to stop..you know this and yet you allow it to happen..it’s time you understand things have changed due to social media and people are now aware of whats going on and are no longer gonna sit back and allow things like this to continue without a fight…and as a united voice we will win and the ignorant laws will be ended and those who support them will be held responsible for there actions
Dear Jade; I wrote and sent an email to [email protected] saying “Please Don’t Kill Kerser the dof!” In title. Please Don’t kill the dog Kerser the dog , just because he or she resembles a banned breed. Kerser has Not done anything wrong. Maybe have a DNA test to discover the breed. Please give Kerser the dog back to his or her companion person , bevause she is aching in agony and Kerser is an emotionall needed animal. From Lisadawn Marble In Santa Rosaan California , America
Sorry, but this is ridiculous. Doesn’t the government in Australia have better things to do? I’ll say a prayer for Kerser that things will turn out well.
I am appalled at the callousness and close minded attitude toward dogs !! Have they no understanding as to the nature of dogs ? Dogs don’t hurt people unless Humans teach them such behaviors … I am so sorry about your friend, I do wish there was more I could do then to write an angry note. !!
How sick is this when a poor animal is murdered over just being who he is.? This baby has done nothing wrong except be born….. This is nothing but pathetic bigotry. BSL laws need to be changed and soon. It makes me so sad to see this. That precious face. Why will they not let him be adopted to save his life? Cold hearted murderers is all they are!!!!!
I wouldn’t live in Australia if you paid me! This just shows the mentality of the government there and this poor puppy is paying with his life! Shame on you Victoria! and you call yourself humane??????????
very unfair ruling these pitbull breeds are just big teddy bears .. dogs are not born vicious it is beaten into them from young these poor creatures have no say what so ever .. they have to be put to sleep .. but this great big beautiful boy did not deserve that same sentence .. it was out of order and uncalled for .. I am so so saddened and feel for you and feel your loss .. so sorry my dear
this is just horrible!! This is a beautiful innocent animal. Why is this happening. It is heartbreaking. Honestly, there is so much cruelty in this world I just wish it would all stop. Please let this beautiful dog live. Please. I will pray for him. It is horrible to kill just because the dog looks like a pit bull. Even if the dog were a pit bull, if it is innocent of a crime, there is no good reason to kill it. I have a friend that owns a pit bull and she is the sweetest dog ever. There is not a mean bone in it’s body. She is so gentle that she is allowed to play with their baby! That dog wouldn’t hurt a fly and this one doesn’t look like it would hurt anyone either. Please spare this life. Kindness is a wonderful feeling. Please.
All animals can be trained
its the bloody owners that cant and wont be trained
all animals want is lots of love..and to be fed with a lovely home and owner’s…..no matter what they look like…
I am now in tears. Seriously. I am so sickened by this. W.T.F. Is wrong with these people. My dogs are my life. I have never heard such bullshit. I will do anything in my power to help. I am soooo sorry.
so sad that such a thing is possible!
this is a beautiful young healthy animal that will be killed when the owners want to take responsible care of this dog…….it’s not right…..put a muzzle on him if he is out in public if this will keep in alive…….this is better than killing him…….I would take him and run if i had to in order to save him……….how can people be so cruel?
This law is unfair and unjust!
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by how it treats its animals.” Ghandi.
I ache for you, I hurt for him, this poor puppy alone and helpless, without the ability to understand why this injustice!
Courage.
This is unacceptable!!!!! I am so sorry for Jade and for dear Kerser. What is wrong with this world? Innocent animals and people are being treated like criminals. It needs to stop NOW!!!!!!!!!! My prayers are with you, Jade.
This is horrible!!! Tons of illegal immigrants are getting in our country, stealing jobs, causing crimes or just living off the system, yet our furry babies who love us unconditionally are being frowned upon just for being a certain type of dog.
This BSL to me is TRUE form of discrimination and if different people can complain about that constantly happening to them and the really messed up thing is that this poor breed got started off on the wrong foot due to the illegal immigrants or what not that came here and started the stupid lame dog fighting and got others into it and now it just keeps going and going.
Those people get a slap on the wrist when caught, the dogs all get put down who have no voice for themselves to explain how they feel or what they’ve been through, so we could understand better how to save them so they can adopted…….and the retards who get away with it either keep it going in another location or for example Mike Vick (AKA the turd) gets right back out there and popular once again making the “bling” and etc. Effin ridiculous!!!!
I have e-mailed everyone I can think of. I wish it would help.
This is a total disgrace , its racist , my heart is breaking , Australia u are a disgrace, hang your heads. 200 years ago your ancestors were sent to australia as criminals, they were innocent people, it was harsh but they were allowed to live and you are here today because of that decision ,Now decendants of those people are killing because of the way a dog looks. Have you learned nothing
Shame on Victoria. How ignorant and shallow are the constituents of that town? God bless Kerser. Clearly, Victoria has their priorities completely out of line and perhaps way too much time on their hands. This is a tragedy, and I do hope what goes around comes back around to those who made this law/decision in Victoria. Again, how shameful.
Of all the infair things in life I have to hear about this is another one of the most unjust ones so far. Did not even show aggression at all and lose it’s life. This makes me very sick to my stomach. Please someone do something to prevent Kerser from losing his life for absolutely no good reason. There has to be a way for him to be kept alive. God please hear my petition to help this dog and his owner.
When we’ll stop these terrible stories ?
I meant to type unfair. Please whoever can help in this matter give it all your heart. I can not believe what a screwed-up world we live in.
This is so sick. When will people use their brains and not allow others to tell them what is true or not. I get fighting mad when this happens. Lets start a rumor that all people with red hair are dangerous and need to be put down. That makes about as much sense as this BSL does. With this as part of the laws of your country, I don’t even want to visit there, much less live there. You are the way you treat your animals and right now, you suck. If I were you, I would move out of this country just as fast as I could pack before they decide that everyone with green eyes are dangerous as well.
I know so many people don’t agree with this,but most people can’t be bothered,unfortunately to say boo. I don’t think this law works and most of these breeds are mixed breeds anyhow. So how do you work out which dogs then do get impounded, yes too much BSL. Wishing for a miracle . Thoughts are with you all.?
I know so many people don’t agree with this,but most people can’t be bothered,unfortunately to say boo. I don’t think this law works and most of these breeds are mixed breeds anyhow. So how do you work out which dogs then do get impounded, yes too much BSL. Wishing for a miracle . Thoughts are with you all.?
Let the dog live. He hasn’t hurt anyone!!!!!
Yes this is a sad state of affairs.I do feel so sad for all those involved. ?
I’m so sorry! May a miracle happen for you before then and may God grant the wrath of hell on to those so ignorant and blind by BSL. We have said over and over that rapists and murders, drug dealers and pedophiles can get away with anything just because they’re simply human. God bless you Kerser! I will pray for you and send you my best friends to play with should this actually go through. Damn you all to hell Victoria government!!
BSL; Bull Shit Legislation. ..I have an Am Staff/Pit mix thst is almost 9. He has been bitten three or four different times and never drew blood back or retaliated. He is not even nearly as aggressive as my Stepmoms Maltese. Also, BSL hasn’t really been effective in any city it has been enacted in. If it is done so for the purpose of reducing dog attacks. .it is bogus. If it is done to prevent underground dog fighting rings, that is different. Also, ignorance is bliss, punish the deed accordingly, not the BREED. IT IS COMPARABLE TO RACIAL PROFILING. GET EDUCATED AND STOP ASSUMING ALL THESE DOGS SRE BAD AND CONSIDER THE FACT THAT ALL OF VICKS DOGS WERE REHABILITATED! !!! DO YOUR RESEARCH AND HOMEWORK PEOPLE!
If a state representative or government can decide what kind of pet we all can have, what’s next?
Sincerely,
Miss Catherine M. Punjani
This is ludicrous and backwards! Why wouldn’t they let her try to send the dog to a home outside of the area? This is the same exact thing as looking at the color of someone’s skin and condemning them to death for it. These people are no different than the KKK!
I am soooo sick of this friggin crap with BSL…instead of Breed Specific Legislation it should be BU LL SHI* Leg. The dog escaped by accident so a six month old pup has to spend all this time in a pound..WHY?? Instead of them spending there money and time on STOPPING THE DANG DOG FIGHTING and CRUELTY done against this breed of dog they attack the dog..HOW about this for every dog that has to die because of his breed..YOU Euthanize the human that put this breed in peril…so for every innocent dog that has to die, let a disgusting human that caused this to die..OH NO of cou rse not it is easier to blame the dog..Like the one one fantastic advertisement says..MAN…they breed me, they beat me, they make me fight for my life, they starve me……..AND YOU BAN ME !!!!!!!!!!
SO lets stop all this stupidity over the breed being bad and put the blame where it belongs..the human behind it…I feel so sorry for all these people using money they don’t have to just save one of there family..MAY GOD have mercy on all your souls that have murdered innocent , loved animals because it looks like a certain breed…I have a friend with a black and tan hound and Lab mix….it looks just like a Rottweiler…exactly…but we know what this puppy is..we knew the parents…So how can some one be so sure what breed a mix is , and it should never be a concern anyway..prayers to Kerser…
Well said, Donna !!!!!!
when are the law makers going to get their act together and admit that the BSL law is not fair
who is to say what a breed is just by looking at it , !! a breed of dog should not be banned , no dog is born to be bad ,its what the owners make it !! what should be banned is bad owners ..stop known irresponable and or abusive owners from ever owning a dog again !!
Dalmations bite more peeps than these so called bull types ..its sheer numbers that make it look bad for the breed , every other dog you meet is a bull breed so its common sence that there will be more documented cases of biting !! its all bullshit
if every other dog you met was a dalmation guess what ..it would be a banned breed …stupidity is no defence for the law makers ..get it sorted and ban owners not dogs
i hope the poor dog gets a reprieve he hasnt done anything wrong its a disgrace !!!
I also have a pit mix, not even sure . She is the most lovable sweetest
dog I’ve known. I think of her when I hear this story. I did have problems getting home insurance. It’s terrible how this had to happen due to mere ignorance. I am so sorry.
Please we can’t let this dog die for no reason but his breed. God help us that we let this happen.
I thought Australia has a heart for animals….why they are doing this kind of animal abused? such a shame.
I had a dog who looked the same as Kerser he died 3yrs ago of old age he was the perfect dog, he played Dad to all the new rescue ones who came in took them under his wing made them feel welcome,
Looked after puppy’s who ended up here, he was my right hand boy.when I saw Kerser face I saw my Mikey I am so sorry what a bad lot ! Its not the dogs It’s the people who make a dog aggressive it should be the people who the Law act on and not the dogs, all they want is love and they will be devoted, Just had a dog in been dump by toilets was seen there 3 days waiting for her owner now with me ,will be going to best home! my prays are with you and Kerser.
This is a BS LAW, but it is the LAW, the person at fault here is JADE, does she think she is above the LAW. 1, FIX THE FENCE 2. REGISTER KERSER, these are hardly undue demands, I am tired of beautiful animals being destroyed because of irresponsible owners. Let’s lay the blame here where it lies, I own two PITS in a large commercial city, I follow the LAWS, BECAUSE I LOVE MY BABIES.
I understand your comments but the reason Jade didn’t worry too much is because he is NOT a pitbull or pit mix,he is an american staff terrier mix so the worst she should be facing is a fine for not registering her dog (and there is no excuse for not doing that,if you move you pay again,small amount to ensure safety for your dog)
I am sure if she had a pitbull she would have made sure he was not at risk.
Because he has a vague resemblance to a pitty he will die,my staffy looks more like a pitbull than he does…..It is so wrong…poor baby :(
This is APPALLING!! It’s NOT the BREED that makes these dogs aggressive it’s the OWNER….Most of these “pit bulls” are gentle loving dogs..it’s the owner’s neglect, greed and loss of interest in the dogs that make them aggressive. BS!!
i feel really angry that Kersar is to be destroyed this poor innocent dog should be home with his loving family i hope sense prevails and he is freed
This is a very sad day for this person and her dog, the law needs to be changed, this dog is just a puppy and should not be killed but given back to his owner, i could not live in a place that did this to animals they are not listering to this owner.