Despite Surrey council's promise to introduce an emergency resolution banning dog chaining, it never materialized.
On April 23, a group showed Surrey council graphic and troubling images of dogs found chained. Some of them ended up crippled and others had hanged to death on their tether.
Coun. Barbara Steele said at the time council would introduce an emergency motion at the Lower Mainland Local Government Association (LMLGA), which took place in Whistler last week. The LMLGA would have forwarded it to the Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM), which would have pressed the province for legislation.
However, the resolution never made it to the floor.
Steele said this week Surrey staff weren't able to draw up the resolution in time and she was also concerned it wouldn't make the threshold necessary for an emergency.
Steele said the city will be bringing a resolution the UBCM in September.
Mayor Dianne Watts said Surrey is working on its own bylaw to have the practice outlawed.
"Any time that you can put in provisions that will assist in the better care of animals, you want it in there as soon as possible," Watts said.
She acknowledged it's unsettling having cities pick up responsibilities that should be the purview of the province.
"It's frustrating, but you have to move forward with these things," Watts said. "Hopefully there are enough people at the UBCM that will support that."