XL Bully ban/ Staffy...

[namec1234]

Hi All,

Not sure if anyone is able to shed some light at all?

Aware the XL Bully breed is now being banned in the UK and I'm just wondering what this means for Staffordshire Bull Terriers and other similar breeds? I own a lovely Staffy and I'd be lying if I said this isn't concerning me. He is pure breed, KC registered etc so not a cross breed of any sort if that makes any difference.

Our family would be heartbroken.

Thanks in advance.

I actually have no issue with all dogs being muzzled and on leads in public.
I think you'll find that a lot of dog owners will disagree with you on this. I have a middling-sized athletic and high-drive breed that would go completely crazy if kept on-lead except for a few runs a week in an enclosed field (and the ones around here would be very unstimulating for them compared to the woods etc). My two are very well trained, I do my best to ensure that they don't bother other people or dogs and I don't see why we should be penalised for the incompetence of some owners and the over-friendliness or aggression of their dogs.

I agree about muzzles.
There are responsible people who exercise their dogs in well fitting muzzles, for a variety of reasons.

One massive Rottweiler cross is always muzzled- just as well, as it was off lead and pinned an elderly woman against a tree only last week.

I didn't;t see it happen, but incidents like this spread around the local dog walking community about who to watch out for.

Regarding training, it's appalling how few owners bother with even a simple recall.

I don't ever let my off lead dog approach an on lead one- there is always a reason for the on lead one being on a lead in a park or open space, and he or she doesn't want to be hassled by an off lead dog.

The difference between an XL bully and a SBT is huge.
I'm a stafford owner. I compete in dog agility.
I would never want a large SBT/cross due to the Pitbull type part of the DDA.
I don't think even a large, over height Stafford would be anything resembling a XL bully.
Breed standard Staffords are up to 16" for a male. Bitches smaller. My rescue bitch is 13" and my registered male is 16".

A law only works if its enforceable I just dont see how brining in a law that says "off lead dogs should be banned for any dog unless on fenced in private property" will work and how can it be enforced?
We have the R2R here I live in an area with an exceedingly low population density I walk my well behaved off lead dogs daily for up to three hours I rarely meet another person. There cannot be a dog warden/policeman hiding behind every bush/tree in rural Scotland waiting to catch people walking there dogs off lead it's just not doable so therefore unenforceable so no one will put there dogs on a lead when they walk them. I should add Ive never seen a XL bully in my life I had to google one to see what they looked like, even in our local town most dogs are gun dogs/lurchers.
Perhaps one way forward is for dogs to be on leads in busy public parks in urban areas maybe at certain times of the day busy times e.g. around lunch time and I also thing that dogs should be on leads on pavements around shops etc. I personally never take my dogs into shopping centres/cafes I dont believe its the right place for a dog and I dont think dogs want to go shopping in JL and actually I rarely see dogs round here in either but this is very rural area, most dogs are working dogs and I suspect their owners have a different attitude towards them.

staffordshire bull terriers are a pedigree you will not be affected unless they are crossbred with pitbull.

Staffords are actually very small. Mine is very well bred male, both parents have excelled at crufts and he’s pretty perfect to breed type. He’s 14kg and I get asked if he’s a miniature all the time…. That’s the impact of cross breeding!

Its not to underestimate that he is muscular with a strong jaw but he’s nothing on an xl bully or even a cane corso or mastiff

Been more attacks and maulings recently - including a ''Dog's trust'' XL Bully, and another in Scotland that mauled a teenager- the dog was tethered with a bloodied face to a railing and has been destroyed . The Dog's trust one was shot at the scene as it entered a school playground. {No local vets could attend}
These are really unstable dogs.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12651583/XL-Bully-dog-mauls-teenage-boy-Scotland.html

Since the XL Bully isn't actually a breed, they'll have to define it as one before they can ban them. Ultimately, banning breeds isn't the solution as the irresponsible breeders will just create some other frankenstein breed.

Regulation of breeders would be more useful, as would controlling the outlets (i.e. no more selling dogs on facebook / gumtree etc).

Don't let the media cloud your judgement. There are tens of thousands of dogs who could potentially be typed as XL Bully who HAVEN'T attacked anyone or anything. I saw on FB someone who had been walking their happy contented on-lead and in control XL Bully when they were attacked by an off-lead German Shepherd, the owner of the GSD didn't help and walked off.

We never get the full picture of any of these attacks that have happened. Video footage doesn't show how that particular dog has been trained, it doesn't tell you if that dog has been reactive in the past. We never know exactly what has happened as the media is too busy trying to sensationalise everything. The dog that escaped it's garden (where the attack happened) then ran around the village, likely terrified, before he was caught and tied up (WITHOUT attacking) and never seemed to pose an actual danger to anyone else.

Breeds with Pit in the mix- especially these XL Bullies are extremely aggressive and touch paper edgy.
I hope the govt do a decent job of legislation- The serious disembowelings these dogs do, the crushing and mauling by Pits and crosses are significantly worse than most other breeds/ crosses.
A 4 yr old was dragged under a garden fence in Detroit recently- a dead child because of these fighting dog types.
A little boy whose grandmother was powerless to help.

I am puzzled why people think they have a right to have their dogs off lead in public spaces. Surely a dog should be on a lead unless in a specific off lead dog exercise area?

No, there aren’t “specific off lead dog exercise areas”.

Some places have by laws about roads, there are some areas that individually don’t allow dogs or require them to be on lead.

Other than that you can have them off lead - the law around dogs in public places is that they need to under control, that can be verbally under control.

There are lots of dog exercise fields where you pay to let your dog run free in a well fenced big area.

There are, I use them.

But they’re private businesses - nothing to do with what is and isn’t allowed in public places.

It’s the dog equivalent of soft play, not something that’s been put in place because dogs aren’t allowed offlead elsewhere.

A lot of dogs are wonderfully trained - until the day they aren't. Many dogs are beautifully behaved - until the day they aren't. Most dogs aren't overtly aggressive - until the day they are.

Just to point out, I have a dog, I love dogs, but I never underestimate them. This current fashion for putting clothes on dogs and treating them like babies doesn't do anyone, human or canine, any favours.

To be fair @cansu may not be in the UK. The US (as far as I understand) has specific dog parks.

Fortunately, this is unnecessary in the UK although a dog in a public place is obliged to be under control. For some dogs, this definitely means being on a lead.

Thank you for your post on the history of bull breeds. You seem to have missed the fact staffs were bred as nanny dogs for many years and would be kept in the nurseries with babies and small children....
Perhaps rather than judging you could post information which is helpful for the person posting or just say nothing at all

Bred as nanny dogs, do you really believe that?

I'd be very interested in what your source is for this contention!

I'll wait...........

@BMW6
A quick search gave me quite a few but here is a link to the insurance company I used for my dog
https://www.animalfriends.co.uk/dog/dog-blog/myth-busting-staffordshire-bull-terriers/

The poster was genuinely worried about her pet and at no point asked for your opinion on whether you believe it to be safe or not. No dog is 100% safe, yes some do more damage than others, most issues are down to the owners not the dog. No dog is born aggressive.
Whilst I believe licensing rules along with other regulations would be a better option it is what it is now.

But that link only repeats the phrase "nanny dog" - it doesn't give the source of that description!!

I found this qoute from a dog food company Nutrisource
Why do we call them bully breeds?Bully breed is a catch-all term for a type of terrier. Some bully breeds actually feature the word “bull,” as in bulldog, bull mastiff and the pit bull. This refers to their common roots as guard dogs and fighters that were tough enough to take on a bull

Does it really make sense to you that a breed with the traits to fight and kill bulls are ideal to accompany children at close quarters????

Omg if I see this nanny dog bullshit one more time....

It's a MYTH. They were never nanny dogs FFS. In fact, no dog breed on earth is!

I know, it's right up there with "eating bread crusts gives you curly hair" and "wanking will make you go blind" 🙄

Quite!