Scotland urgently reviewing XL bully policy
XL bully dogs will be banned in England and Wales from 1 February.
The Scottish government has hinted that a ban on XL bully dogs might be coming soon, amid concerns about dogs being brought to the country from England and Wales.
In response to a parliamentary question on Tuesday, 9 January, the minister for community safety Siobhian Brown told the Scottish parliament that “ministers are urgently reviewing the policy on XL bully dogs” and that public safety would be paramount in their considerations.
From 1 February, it will be illegal to own an XL bully in England and Wales without a Certificate of Exemption.
As the Scottish government has yet to introduce any new legislation, there have been multiple reports of people from England and Wales rehoming XL bully dogs in Scotland. This has caused concern among some in Scotland that the dogs could be a threat to public safety and create animal welfare issues.
Ms Brown said: “The unintended consequence of the UK Government’s policy is that we are now seeing an influx of XL bully dogs to Scotland. It is important to ensure that Scotland does not become a safe haven or a dumping ground for XL bully dogs from England and Wales.”
Although no new rules have yet been announced, the Scottish government has been meeting with organisations including the Scottish SPCA, The Kennel Club, Dogs Trust, and Police Scotland as it considers how to respond to the UK Government’s ban.
The minister hinted that a ban in Scotland could be forthcoming, saying: “At this time, any purchase of an XL bully dog would be made in a context that may suggest that it would be preferable not to acquire such a dog at the present time in Scotland.”
As in England and Wales, a ban in Scotland would likely face criticism from some dog owners and animal welfare organisations.
The Scottish SPCA has said that it would prefer to see a focus on tackling irresponsible dog ownership and low-welfare breeding practices rather than banning a breed.
The charity stated on 5 January: ‘We fully support legislation to protect the public, and, as a responsible charity, will comply with whatever decision the Scottish government makes.
‘We believe that anyone found guilty of owning a dangerous dog that has been involved in an attack should be automatically banned for life from owning another dog.
‘However, we are opposed to this ban on a specific dog type, which we believe is not the most effective way to protect the public. Instead, we believe any breed of dog can be potentially out of control and dangerous in the wrong hands.’
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