Warning XL Bullies will be ‘abandoned en masse’ as nationwide ban takes effect

A number of XL Bullies are expected to be euthanised from tomorrow as a ban on the breed comes into effect. Alamy Stock Photo

The Morning Lead

Pat Watt, Chief Executive of the Dublin SPCA, said the ban presents “a terrible dilemma” for XL Bully owners.

XL BULLIES MAY be abandoned by ‘anxious’ owners in the wild as a nationwide ban on the restricted breed comes into effect this morning, the Dublin SPCA has warned.

New legislation was introduced in October by former Rural and Community Development Minister Heather Humphreys, which made it illegal to import, breed, rehome or resell XL Bully dogs.

The law means that XL Bullies can no longer legally be kept by their owners as of today, unless they have a certificate of exemption issued by the local authority in which the XL Bully resides.

The new certificates will mean that an XL Bully can be kept by its owner until the natural end of the dog’s life – though the certificate can only be obtained if the dog is licensed, neutered and microchipped.

Dog owners found in breach of the certificate will have their XL Bully seized by dog wardens and gardaí, and may also face fines of up to €2,500 and three months in prison.

The strict new ownership rules were introduced to “protect public safety” following a number of attacks by XL Bully type dogs, the Department of Rural and Community Development said.

Legislation came into effect last year shortly after the death of 23-year-old Nicole Morey, who was mauled to death by her dogs (one of which was an XL Bully) in June.

Several animal welfare organisations including the ISPCA, Dogs Trust Ireland, Irish Blue Cross and MADRA have spoken out against the ban, arguing that such drastic measures “fail to reduce dog bite incidents” – instead presenting “significant challenges” for dog owners and the animal welfare sector.

The law does not yet pertain to animal welfare organisations, as the High Court issued a last-minute block on Friday to part of the legislation that would allow agents for the Minister for Rural Development to seize or euthanise XL Bully dogs in the care of animal welfare groups.

Dublin-based animal welfare group DSPCA has said that many XL Bullies in Ireland may now face possible euthanasia, as a number of Council-run dog pounds can legally put down the unregistered animals.

Pat Watt, Chief Executive of the DSPCA, told The Journal that the ban presents a “terrible dilemma for dog owners”.

‘They’re going to immediately suffer’

“We’ve had some people attempting to abandon their dogs with us, and on the surface that looks like a terribly cruel thing to do,” Watt said.

“But the in the minds of many pet owners, either they put the dog into the hands of an animal charity shelter by surrendering it, or the dog is seized off them and is taken to the pound to be euthanised”.

Watt added that many dog pounds across the country, administered by local authorities, “don’t have space for more dogs”.

Under the Control of Dogs Act, dogs who have completed a mandatory five-day stay in Council-run dog pounds can be euthanised to “create space” if the pound cannot rehome them or find a rescue with space to take them. 

The DSPCA and several other animal dog charities have warned that the dog breed may be “abandoned en masse” at charity shelters and in the wild, leading to further risks for the animals.

He explained that the DSPCA and several other animal welfare charities had worked hard in recent weeks to rehome XL Bullies to Poland and the Czech Republic before the ban came into force.

The ban now means that animal welfare charities such as the DSPCA are no longer permitted to rehome or export the dog breed.

Watt said that there has been a “sharp rise” in the surrendering of other restricted dog breeds to the DPSCA in recent months, including American pitbulls and English bulldogs.

“Just last week, we had somebody attempting to tie up a dog and abandon it outside our shelter in broad daylight,” Watt said.

“People are panicking in a significant way – my worry is that if those dogs being surrendered and abandoned in the wild aren’t found, then they are going to immediately suffer.

“The stigma surrounding the ban is creating a massive, widespread problem out there”.

‘Complicated to understand’

Watt explained that many owners of cross-bred or bully breed dogs have been left confused by the new restrictions, saying that the legislation is “loosely defined”.

XL Bully dogs are a variant of the American Bully breed. They are usually bigger in height and body shape than other American Bully breed types.

Ahead of the ban, the Department of Rural and Community Development published a physical confirmation standard which owners can use to check if their dog meets the physical characteristics of an XL Bully dog.

Watt argued that these descriptions are “up for interpretation”.

“When you look at the number of measurements you have to complete to try and determine whether this dog is an XL Bully or not, it’s complicated for people out there to understand,” Watt said.

“What the legislation has done is it has contaminated the perception of other bull breeds and cross breeds, and they’re now starting to be surrendered and abandoned because owners are fearful as to what’s going to happen to the dog.

“It’s creating a real misperception that a number of other breeds are and cross breeds are inherently dangerous, which is just not true.”

XL Bully Ban-4_90713612

Dog owners pictured at a protest against the XL Bully ban in September. Sasko Lazarov / Rolling News

Sasko Lazarov / Rolling News / Rolling News

‘They’re very gentle’

Watt said that the stigma around a number of dog breeds is due to “cruelty and neglect”.

“They’re tremendous dogs of a great nature, and they’re very gentle – this characterization that they’re capable of of attacking owners and individuals is not helping anybody,” Watt said. 

“The main thing that impacts their likeliness or urge to attack are aspects like cruelty, neglect and a lack of responsible pet ownership or a lack of education”.

Watt argued that the ban was distracting from “more urgent and needed law enforcement” on unsafe and illegal dog breeding.

“All this is going to do is going to drive illegal breeding practices underground, and we already have evidence that there are new hybrid breeds emerging to replace the XL bullies,” Watt said. 

“The ban won’t stop the practice unless there is proper enforcement.”

More information on the XL Bully ban can be found here.

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