Dog assaults have elevated by as much as 62 per cent in some components of England, analysis has proven. And the worst-hit area for variety of assaults alone was the West Midlands with 1,244 from July 2022 to June 2023.
The information got here after the Prime Minister promised to ban the XL Bully following a spate of assaults. One of the catalysts for the choice was an incident in Bordesley Green.
Video footage showed an 11-year-old girl and two men being attacked by a crossbreed XL Bully/Staffordshire Bull Terrier puppy. Ana Paun was pulled to the ground after the canine broke free from its collar close to a row of retailers on September 9, The Mirror reports.
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A 20-year-old man tried to assist her however the canine chased him to a close-by petrol station and attacked him on the bottom. Other areas hit onerous by assaults in 2022 and 2023 had been West Yorkshire (1,025), Merseyside (1,183), Kent (1,135) and Greater Manchester (829).
Freedom of Information requests to all police forces in England had been submitted by ITV News, with 23 forces responding. Those forces recorded 11,373 canine assaults between July 2021 and June 2022.
From July 2022 to June 2023, there have been 13,940 assaults reported. The areas with the best rises had been Gloucestershire at 62 per cent, Cambridgeshire at 52 per cent, Lancashire at 47 per cent, Bedfordshire at 40 per cent and Nottinghamshire at 31 per cent.
The variety of dogs detained below the Dangerous Dogs Act additionally weht up by greater than 50 per cent since July 2021. ITV mentioned the determine included banned breeds and dogs dangerously uncontrolled. The variety of dogs destroyed below the Act in England since July 2021 was up by 30 per cent.
David Martin, group head of Animal Welfare at My Family Vets, mentioned: “The canine inhabitants usually actually grew throughout Covid. Since then the breed that has remained excessive in recognition and has grown in numbers is the American Bully.”
Despite protests by XL Bully house owners, he mentioned “the vast majority” of aggressive assaults had been attributable to their breeding and possession. He added: “It’s not an issue purely associated to the American Bully, however that’s the breed that’s at present trendy.”
The Mirror has been calling for change with the assistance of Emma Whitfied, from Caerphilly, whose ten-year-old son Jack Lis was killed by an XL Bully two years in the past. Three calls for have been supported by Labour’s Wayne David MP, victims of canine assaults and the Dog Control Coalition.
They are:
- Overhauling the Dangerous Dogs Act. An pressing overview of the legislation is required and more durable penalties needs to be thought of.
- Enforcement of the principles to cease the unlawful and irresponsible breeding and promoting of dogs.
- A public info marketing campaign to advertise the significance of accountable canine possession and the necessity for coaching.
