Letters to the Editor

Chronicle-Herald, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010 


Brindi case a travesty

I suppose today that Peter Kelly and his council are smug in the wake of winning the court case against Francesca Rogier. I am angry because this court case was won for the mayor using my tax dollars.

I do not support the animal control laws as they stand, and I want them changed with input from pet owners and animal lovers. As far as I am concerned, this case is not about a crime committed by Francesca or her dog. Instead, it’s about the fact she challenged somebody’s authority.

And unfortunately, she depended on the justice system for help. I hope Nova Scotians will take notice that this could happen to you and your pet. We should have given Francesca more support in this terrible time as she tried to save her dog.

It is not too late. Protest this move and demand that Brindi be given back to Francesca. Brindi was kennelled for 19 months, Francesca has been financially devastated. This is abuse. What kind of society are we running anyway?

People of HRM, I beg you to vote this mayor and council out as quickly as possible and demand new laws to protect animals and pet owners, and select animal control officers with a stringent new hiring policy.

Olive Pastor, Caribou

Chronicle-Herald, Thursday, March 4, 2010

Not a dangerous dog

After reading her Feb. 28 letter "Brindi case a travesty," I have no option but to agree with Olive Pastor.

The mayor and city council have done nothing to help Francesca Rogier in her time of need.

Brindi is not a dangerous dog. The SPCA put a picture of Brindi’s birthday party on its website. Employees and their families were sitting around Brindi, who was not wearing a muzzle. They all looked very happy, including the toddler who was sitting a few feet away. 


That picture tells a different story than what the city wants us to believe.

Because she challenged somebody’s authority, Ms. Rogier and Brindi must now suffer?

And to think that the city used our tax dollars to hire a private firm of lawyers to prosecute Ms. Rogier is ridicules. 


It’s time to turn back the clock, give Ms. Rogier the appropriate fines, and let her take her dog home, which should have been done as soon as Brindi was seized — which is what is done in 99 per cent of these types of cases.

If this can happen to Ms. Rogier and Brindi, it can happen to anyone who owns a pet. Do you want to be next?

Valerie Slaunwhite, Beaver Bank



Unpardonable sin

As an animal lover and citizen of HRM, I must agree with Olive Pastor’s comments in the Sunday Herald.

I am now eagerly awaiting the opportunity to cast my anti-incumbent vote in the next municipal election.

Ms. Rogier committed the unpardonable sin of fighting back against a bad law.

Little did she know that the vindictive pettiness of our elected council would do far more damage to the public interest than the actions of her dog.

This thuggery should be resisted by anyone professing concern for the rights of the governed.

Rick Crawford, Hubley



Callous treatment

This letter is not the first time I have come to the defence of Francesca Rogier and her dog Brindi.


I still maintain that someone higher up is the instigator of this travesty. To keep an animal 19 months from its owner is callous and cruel! Would it be too crass to ask who is footing the bill for this dog’s incarceration?

As for the justice system: One judge says "give her back to her owner"and another judge says "no."

Now it is your chance to speak up.
Anne White, Truro