Rishi Sunak was urged yesterday to consider a general cull of all American XL bullies over fears that faster action was needed to combat the ‘killer dogs’.
The call from a senior Tory MP came after the Government announced a ban on the breed last week, but with an amnesty for existing owners as long as their pets were registered, neutered and muzzled when in public.
Government officials stressed last night that by requiring all owners to get their bully dogs neutered, the breed would simply die out.
However, Sir Robert Goodwill, chairman of the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, said Ministers may have to act more quickly.
He told The Mail on Sunday: ‘These dogs live well over 12 years and we can’t wait a decade to remove this threat.
MAULED TO DEATH: Ian Price, 52, who was killed by these suspected XL bullies (pictured below) in Staffordshire on Thursday
Following the attack involving these two dogs, the Prime Minister branded XL bully dogs a ‘danger to our communities’ and vowed to bring in rules by the end of the year under the Dangerous Dogs Act to ban them
‘Imagine if you are living next door to someone with one of these dogs and you have young children.
‘Yes, it would be muzzled when the owner takes it out. But would you want one of these killer dogs next door for the next decade?’
Aggressive animals drug dealers use as status dogs’
On Friday, the Prime Minister branded XL bully dogs a ‘danger to our communities’ and vowed to bring in rules by the end of the year under the Dangerous Dogs Act to ban them. It came after a horrific incident 24 hours earlier when father-of-two Ian Price, Camion 52, was mauled to death in a frenzied attack by two suspected bullies.
Days before, Ana Paun, 11, was hurt by an American bully – a type linked to ten deaths since 2021.
Environment Secretary Therese Coffey is to convene a meeting with experts to define the XL breed, which is said to have originated in the US in the 1980s when American pitbull terriers were crossed with Staffordshire terriers.
But Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss said yesterday there would be an amnesty for existing owners. She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘People that have these dogs – and some will be well socialised, well managed, well trained – you will need to register and take actions. Your dog will need to be neutered… muzzled when out in public and on a lead and insured. If you comply… you will be able to keep your dog.’
American XL Bully dogs will be banned in the UK by the end of the year
Ministers have been ordered to convene a panel of experts and police chiefs to define the XL Bully breed – with a view to banning it under the Dangerous Dogs Act (file picture)
Sir Robert said he would wait for details of the ban before deciding whether to demand a cull. But he said: ‘There’s no such thing as an XL bully dog that could not be potentially aggressive.
‘Aggressive animals that drug dealers and other criminals use as status dogs… are not and never will be suitable family pets.’
However, a coalition of animal charities – including the RSPCA – said banning bullies would not stop attacks, and urged the Government to tackle unscrupulous breeders.
Labour MP Rosie Duffield, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Dog Advisory Welfare Group, welcomed the PM’s move, but warned against focusing ‘too heavily on specific types and breeds rather than wider issues around responsible ownership, licensing and the behaviour of criminal gangs’.
