LINDSAY -After getting his 8- speed manual Renegade wheelchair last fall, Abe Perrault thought he had the solution to continuing his fishing and hunting activities. He has hit a bump, though, because he is not permitted to carry a loaded weapon while his wheelchair is in motion.
The Lindsay resident has been hunting since the age of 12. Two years ago, he had a stroke at age 52. He has a scooter but it wasn't until he acquired the Renegade wheelchair at Thanksgiving last year that he seemed to have overcome his mobility problem to go hunting. He was profiled in The Lindsay Post last November regarding his new-found freedom with the chair.
However, Perrault says he has learned that the Ministry of Natural Resources classifies his wheelchair as a muscularly powered vehicle, a category that also includes bicycles. A loaded gun is prohibited from being carried while on such vehicles, as they are from motorized vehicles.
"My wheelchair is my legs," Perrault said in an interview.
He noted that hunters can carry a loaded gun while walking. "You're more apt to trip over a stick than I am in my wheelchair," he said.
He said he can walk short distances, but he isn't steady enough to walk the distances on uneven terrain involved in hunting. Having his gun loaded while he is in motion in the wheelchair is critical to the hunt, he said. "Ninety-five per cent of the time that you are leaving or going, you see your animals." Also, without a loaded gun while in motion he can't go bird hunting, he said.
Perrault wants the laws changed so that physically disabled people can carry a loaded gun while hunting and in motion in manually powered wheelchairs. He has contacted the Ministry of Natural Resources and the office of Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MPP Laurie Scott.
"There are provisions that would allow specified disabled individuals to have a loaded firearm on a motorized vehicle and to discharge it from the vehicle," said Jolanta Kowalski, senior media relations officer with the Ministry of Natural Resources. "This would include wheelchairs whether they are motorized or powered by muscular power. Individuals may apply for authorization permits for up to five years from their local MNR office."
However, she added, "Under the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act 1997 it is not legal for someone to carry a loaded firearm while their vehicle or wheelchair is moving. This condition was put in place due to concerns about public safety associated with having a loaded firearm on or in a moving vehicle.
"We try to accommodate hunters with disabilities and work with them to ensure they have a successful and safe hunt. In support of Ontario's commitment to improve accessibility for people with disabilities, the Ministry of Natural Resources will continue to review government initiatives, including legislation and policies, to identify accessibility barriers that may need to be removed."
In an interview, Wylie Harvey, owner of Accessible Canadian Adventures in Milton, Ont., said this is the first time the issue has been raised with him. Harvey has been in a wheelchair since 1995, when he broke his back.
He started his company in 2005 to help disabled sports enthusiasts to hunt, fish and go on wildlife photography adventures.
He said he has a permit so that he can shoot from his truck once it is stopped. To hunt in the bush, he said he drives in and drops his gun and gear, drives out, then returns in his wheelchair.
"I've never had a need to travel with it loaded (on his wheelchair)," he said, "but I see what he's getting at."
Wylie said he can't see what the difference is between walking with a loaded gun and carrying it on the lap while in a wheelchair. But he had reservations about how convenient it would be. "I know the exact chair he means. It would be difficult to carry it on his lap."
But, he added, "I see his point to want to be equal to his walking companions."
Perrault said he knows changing a law is a long-term process, but he wanted the public made aware of the issue while he continues to challenge it. "I've got the ball rolling, but I want everybody to know."
http://www.thepost.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3438423
The Lindsay resident has been hunting since the age of 12. Two years ago, he had a stroke at age 52. He has a scooter but it wasn't until he acquired the Renegade wheelchair at Thanksgiving last year that he seemed to have overcome his mobility problem to go hunting. He was profiled in The Lindsay Post last November regarding his new-found freedom with the chair.
However, Perrault says he has learned that the Ministry of Natural Resources classifies his wheelchair as a muscularly powered vehicle, a category that also includes bicycles. A loaded gun is prohibited from being carried while on such vehicles, as they are from motorized vehicles.
"My wheelchair is my legs," Perrault said in an interview.
He noted that hunters can carry a loaded gun while walking. "You're more apt to trip over a stick than I am in my wheelchair," he said.
He said he can walk short distances, but he isn't steady enough to walk the distances on uneven terrain involved in hunting. Having his gun loaded while he is in motion in the wheelchair is critical to the hunt, he said. "Ninety-five per cent of the time that you are leaving or going, you see your animals." Also, without a loaded gun while in motion he can't go bird hunting, he said.
Perrault wants the laws changed so that physically disabled people can carry a loaded gun while hunting and in motion in manually powered wheelchairs. He has contacted the Ministry of Natural Resources and the office of Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MPP Laurie Scott.
"There are provisions that would allow specified disabled individuals to have a loaded firearm on a motorized vehicle and to discharge it from the vehicle," said Jolanta Kowalski, senior media relations officer with the Ministry of Natural Resources. "This would include wheelchairs whether they are motorized or powered by muscular power. Individuals may apply for authorization permits for up to five years from their local MNR office."
However, she added, "Under the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act 1997 it is not legal for someone to carry a loaded firearm while their vehicle or wheelchair is moving. This condition was put in place due to concerns about public safety associated with having a loaded firearm on or in a moving vehicle.
"We try to accommodate hunters with disabilities and work with them to ensure they have a successful and safe hunt. In support of Ontario's commitment to improve accessibility for people with disabilities, the Ministry of Natural Resources will continue to review government initiatives, including legislation and policies, to identify accessibility barriers that may need to be removed."
In an interview, Wylie Harvey, owner of Accessible Canadian Adventures in Milton, Ont., said this is the first time the issue has been raised with him. Harvey has been in a wheelchair since 1995, when he broke his back.
He started his company in 2005 to help disabled sports enthusiasts to hunt, fish and go on wildlife photography adventures.
He said he has a permit so that he can shoot from his truck once it is stopped. To hunt in the bush, he said he drives in and drops his gun and gear, drives out, then returns in his wheelchair.
"I've never had a need to travel with it loaded (on his wheelchair)," he said, "but I see what he's getting at."
Wylie said he can't see what the difference is between walking with a loaded gun and carrying it on the lap while in a wheelchair. But he had reservations about how convenient it would be. "I know the exact chair he means. It would be difficult to carry it on his lap."
But, he added, "I see his point to want to be equal to his walking companions."
Perrault said he knows changing a law is a long-term process, but he wanted the public made aware of the issue while he continues to challenge it. "I've got the ball rolling, but I want everybody to know."
http://www.thepost.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3438423
