A well-known dog trainer is speaking out about a long-running battle with the Township of Langley.
Doug Leaf has trained dogs for movies and operated a commercial kennel for about 17 years.
His business is run from his 4.5-acre property in Langley.
But despite having a commercial kennel licence, the Township of Langley has issued him six $200 bylaw tickets because of barking.
“They’d issued me a licence to operate a kennel. I made no contract with them that I’d have noiseless dogs, that doesn’t make any sense, a dog will bark.”
The tickets, dating back to 2016, were due to noise complaints from one neighbour, who has since moved.
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Leaf has challenged the tickets. First he lost through the local adjudication system, but then a B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled there was an error in law, and sent the case back to the adjudicator.
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The judge also awarded him partial costs.
Meanwhile the Township of Langley is continuing its legal challenge for costs, taking it to the B.C. Court Of Appeal, though no date has been set for the hearing.
“Suddenly it’s taken a life of its own and it’s continued. It’s an expensive proposition,” said Leaf.
The Township of Langley would not comment for this story, nor would they address the mounting legal costs of the case.