Pack of dogs roaming southwest Calgary has residents concerned for their safety – Calgary

Many of the people living in two of the newest communities in southwest Calgary are concerned for their safety following reports of a pack of dogs roaming free in the area.

Some residents of Vermilion Hill and Alpine Park say they’ve frequently seen the dogs.

Brianne Hart says she walks the area all the time with her six-month-old son, but now keeps those walks to daytime hours because of the dogs.

“You don’t know how these dogs are gonna respond or if they’re gonna actually attack someone. I know they have gone after a few people,” says Hart.

Hart says her sister Brook Nixon was chased this past summer while taking her son for a walk around Skyline Pond.

Nixon says the dogs came within 15 metres of her and the baby.

“I’m thinking, ‘What do I do? Do I grab and scoop him out of the stroller and keep running?’ I don’t know the neighbourhood. I’m not from that neighbourhood.  So yeah, I just got him as fast as I could back to his mom and back home, but I was panicked for sure,” says Nixon.

Others living in the area have posted on the Alpine Park and Vermilion Hill Discussion group on Facebook describing their own accounts with the pack of dogs.

One person wrote that their wife, kids and dog were followed by the pack, while another wrote that they “almost got attacked by about four tan dogs at the Vermilion Pond area,” and that the dogs came from the neighbouring Tsuut’ina First Nation after they “broke through the barrier.”

The City of Calgary told Global News it is aware of the concerns about the dogs.

In a written statement, the city says “when dogs from the Tsuut’ina Nation enter Calgary city limits, the city works closely with Tsuut’ina Police Service to respond. In these cases, owners may be charged under the Responsible Pet Ownership Bylaw for having a dog at large.”

“Community Safety Officers, Calgary Police Service, and Tsuut’ina Police actively collaborate to locate the animals, ensure public safety, and prevent incidents,” the statement continues.

Tsuut’ina Police told Global News it has received one complaint this year of a dog in the area, but insists that “public safety is a priority for the Tsuut’ina Nation,” adding it takes all reports of aggressive animals seriously.

“Animal concerns, including stray or aggressive animals, should be reported to the animal or bylaw services in the relevant jurisdiction. Animal issues are complex; reporting them to the appropriate authorities ensures complaints are properly documented and addressed in a timely manner,” says Tsuut’ina Police.

Many of the residents in the two communities claim inadequate fencing along 146 Avenue southwest, bordering the Tsuut’ina Nation, is to blame for allowing the dogs to roam freely.

Nathan Arthur, project manager with Dream Asset Management, the developer of Alpine Park, says neither the company nor the Alpine Park Home Owners Association (HOA) has authority over animal control and he says funding fencing is outside the association’s mandate.

However, Arthur is encouraging anyone who encounters stray or aggressive dogs to report them to Calgary Bylaw.

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