People going through the process of registering their dogs under the new bylaws say there is a feeling that city officials are making it up as they go along.
Marie-Pier Beauséjour is frustrated that her boxer breed dog will be subject to dangerous dog regulation simply because it has a similar look.
"I asked if DNA tests would be good proof of my dog being a non-pitbull, but they said that DNA could be refused by the city because all that counts is the physical characteristics."
She says the definition of the breed is too broad and too vague.
"They wouldn't tell me what the characteristics are but they said my dog was a pitbull type, but they wouldn't say why."
She says getting the dog evaluated was a headache; she was given only a day's notice for her weekday appointment. Others have had to travel across the city with their dogs to have them measured, weighed and observed.
Opposition councillor Sterling Downey says compliance with the new laws has been unnecessarily onerous.
"You should be able to go and register your dog whenever you need to register them, you shouldn't have to go all the way to the other end of the city," says Downey. "If they're going to this then this has to be an accessible service, and it's not!"
Information about breed evaluators hired by the city isn't available on the city of Montreal website, residents have to call 311 - and some have reported getting 3 different answers from 3 different agents.
Those who managed to get a hold of the evaluators were asked to fill out a doodle to show their availabilities.
"The city is not prepared to do this bylaw," says Downey. "They've realized now that there's 4 hour waits when they're doing the registration days, that there's such a demand and so many people, they just don't have the means to do it."
He says while Montreal is sloppily pushing forward with the harsh new bylaw there are other communities around Canada busy repealing theirs.