The Civil Resolution Tribunal’s ruling, published online Thursday, described a dispute between the owners and a German food stall that also sold dog treats at the 2021 market. The owners bought their dog a pork bone and it “undoubtedly became ill and was diagnosed with bone fragments in the small intestine,” the decision states. The owners claimed just over $2,000 through CRT to cover vet costs and the distress she suffered, claiming the market stall was “negligent and falsely advertised that the bone was safe for dogs”. The business, however, said it was the owners’ responsibility to ensure the treats were safe. In her ruling, the court’s vice president Shelley Lopez wrote that the issue was whether the market stall was negligent or in breach of contract for selling the bones. Lopez said her decision was made on the balance of probabilities, meaning one scenario was more likely than not. Lopez said the two parties agree there was a sign posted at the booth with “a caricature of a smiling dog with a bone in its mouth.” The sign read: “Want to see your dog this happy? If your answer is YES, take home a dog bone.” The sign also said the bones were $2.50 each. “Based on the labeling, I find that (the business) advertised the leftover pork bone as suitable for dogs,” Lopez wrote. “(The business) admits this and says it did so in error based on past experience of receiving many customer requests for their dog bones. However, I do not find that the ad went so far as to explicitly advertise that the bones were safe for dogs”. Lopez explained that dog owners are responsible for proving that the company violated a standard of care. To do so, they must also prove that the pork bone “was in fact inherently dangerous to the dogs, as opposed to their dog’s injuries being the result of an unfortunate accident.” “The difficulty … is that while they say their veterinarian stated that the pork bone was not safe for dogs, none of the invoices or the vet’s notes say so,” Lopez’s decision said. “I accept that the pork bone was fragmented and the fragments caused internal injuries to the dog. However, I cannot conclude from the vet records that pork bones are unsafe for dogs simply because the … dog was injured by chewing on a of such bone.” As a result, Lopez found that the owners failed to prove that the company breached the standard of care because they were unable to prove that the bone was unsafe for dogs. The owners’ claim was rejected. The American Kennel Club advises dog owners not to share pork bones with their pets. The AKC recommends giving dogs large cow or bison bones, but only if they are uncooked, to reduce the chance of splintering. CTV News Vancouver has reached out to the business for comment. The CRT ruling said the business voluntarily agreed to no longer sell the pork as dog bones.
