Bullbreeds and the law-Breed Specific Legislation

The law:

The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 was rushed through Parliament in response to media and public pressure following a string of high profile dog attacks. Under the Act ‘Breed Specific Legislation’ (BSL) prohibits the ownership of certain ‘types’ of dogs the most popular prohibited ‘type’ is the pit bull terrier.(rspca website) Dangerous dogs are classified by type, not breed, which means that a dog’s physical appearance will determine whether it’s deemed to be prohibited under the law.(bx website)

Section One(S1) of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991(DDA)applies to the following dog types known as: The Pit Bull Terrier (PBT) The Dogo Argentino The Fila Braziliero The Japanese Tosa

It also allows for the Secretary of State to designate any “type appearing to him to be bred for fighting or to have the characteristics of a type bred for that purpose” It is illegal for any for anyone to breed, sell, exchange advertise or expose for sale, make or offer such a dog as a gift, allow such a dog in public without a lead and muzzle, abandon, or be in possession of a dog as named above. Section one is a criminal charge.

What is a ‘Type’?:

A qualified Dog Legislation Officer is required to legally ‘type’ a dog and is supposed to take measurements and physical characteristics into account when looking at a suspected S1 dog. However it is stated and proven that it is very difficult to correctly assess as many dogs are crossed. The description and guidelines used are also concerning, for example a Labrador was used as an example. The Labrador scored highly via measurements used to determine a ‘type’ and technically could be determined a ‘type’ by the guidelines. The dog’s behaviour has no effect on the outcome of the identification of the dog. Taking physical measurements of the dog is also not a legal requirement and many dogs in rehoming centres are simply glanced at for a split second. There is also no age limit when a dog can be ‘typed’ and from personal experience I have seen puppies that have been typed at just a few weeks old. Unfortunately owning a dog that looks like a PBT is what is illegal, therefore owning for example a Labrador cross staffie may resemble a PBT, therefore would be illegal.

Breed Specific Legislation and its affects:

The Blue Cross, along with many other organisations, believes the Act has completely failed to adequately protect the public. In the last five years, the number of dog bite incidents has actually risen by 79% in London and 43 per cent nationally. The current law has failed to eradicate the pit bull terrier in the UK and has, in fact, created a status symbol out of dogs of these types and their lookalikes. All dogs have the potential to be dangerous or wonderful, well-behaved pets and it is people, not the dogs themselves, which make dogs dangerous. In November 2010 a public

consultation by Defra revealed that 88% of respondents believed breed specific legislation in its current form was not effective in protecting the public from dangerous dogs.(Bx website)

BSL punishes certain types of dogs for the way they look and fails to consider a dog’s individual

behavior when determining whether or not they are dangerous. As a result, dogs whose behavior

poses no risk are branded 'dangerous' just because of their appearance. Dogs can’t help who their

owners are, yet the law unfairly places the onus of responsibility on them, rather than the

irresponsible actions of the owner.

The RSPCA and many other rescue centers see the impact of BSL first hand. Some dogs brought into

the centers, as part of cruelty investigations or unclaimed strays, are later identified by the police as

a prohibited type. Despite many of these dogs being friendly, well socialised and perfect candidates

for rehoming to responsible owners, the law doesn’t allow them to be rehomed. This causes much

heartbreak for staff involved who form very strong bonds with these dogs, particularly as many of

them have only ever known violence or neglect from their owners.(RSPCA website)

Tyson the trained sniffer dog:

In July 2014 Tyson was an unfortunate victim of BSL, he was a neglect case from the RSPCA and was featured on Channel 5’s show the “Dog rescuers” episode 3. His carer noticed a significant talent for searching and contacted the Avon and Somerset Police, as they have successfully trained previous rescue bullbreeds in the past.

Tyson was tested for his ability to search and his handler PC Lee Webb said “Tyson had a great potential” He was shocked to see how driven Tyson was to search and showed the most extreme skills he had ever seen.

A police dog specialist ruled Tyson, though a cross-breed, was of the banned 'pitbull type' a few months later and Tyson was returned to West Hatch RSPCA centre near Taunton. Unable to legally rehome Tyson under the Government's breed specific laws, the centre had no choice but to put him to sleep. The outcome has devastated police dog handlers and RSPCA staff who cared for and trained the 18 month-young dog.

Inspector Dave Eddy, who oversees the Tri-Force Dog Section, said to the Telegraph newspaper: "We are absolutely devastated Tyson had to be returned to West Hatch, and that due to being a banned breed, he had to be put to sleep in accordance with Dangerous Dog Act. "It can be very hard to identify the dangerous breeds if they are mixed with other breeds that look similar such as Staffordshire Bull Terriers. In Tyson's case, it was our expert Dog Legislation Officers who identified the physical traits. PC Lee Webb who looked after Tyson was particularly upset.” PC Webb already handles a rescue Staffie, PD Kos, who is an excellent search dog. An RSPCA spokesperson added"All of the staff who cared for and loved Tyson are incredibly upset that such a wonderful dog had to be put to sleep. "The Dangerous Dogs Act punishes certain types of dogs for the way they look and fails to consider a dog’s individual behaviour when determining whether or not they are dangerous. As a result, dogs whose behaviour poses no risk are branded ‘dangerous’ just because of their appearance. Ultimately poor Tyson illustrates the absurdity of BSL and the

Dangerous Dogs Act, and is another lovely dog who has paid the price because of it."

A VN’s role:

As a charity VN in London I meet bullbreeds on a daily basis and rarely have any concerns for my safety, I also own a rescue staffie and he is an ambassador of his breed, he is extremely well mannered and loves people and other dogs and is always a point of conversation with fellow dog walkers and I am very proud to own him.

Education is the key, many bullbreed owners have no idea what type of dog they have as so many are cross bred. However the majority of owned bullbreeds are kept by loving families that are also innocent victims of this law. I have met owners who have had their dogs dragged out their homes and euthinased because of the way the dog looks and been left heart broken.

We need to talk to bullbreed owners about this and ensure that they are aware of the law that may affect them. However from talking to staff that run DDA Watch they agree that by ensuring that the owner has neutered, microchipped and insured their dog they are more likely to have their dog exempted by the court and not have the dog destroyed as they have shown that they are responsible dog owners. This means that the owners must also have the dog tattooed, muzzled in all public areas and have third party insurance.

If you work in a rehoming facility and you have any dealings with a DLO and you feel that the dog has been ‘typed’ incorrectly you are within your right to ask for a second opinion as that is what it is, someone’s opinion. From personal experience I have seen many dogs identified as a S1 dog that in my professional opinion has all the characteristics of a Staffordshire bull terrier, but are still deemed a S1.

I hope that this article inspires you all to take an active role in this and get staff and owners involved to educate people on this problem of overbreeding and the law that surrounds this very loyal and popular breed.

(Telegraph)