I know Pitbulls are banned in England, but what about crossbreeds?

Question

I know somone who has a Pitbull, an American Pitbull crossed with a British one. The dog is soppy as hell, i've never even heard him bark, he's seriously the quietist dog i know. But he has attacked other dogs before, and there are a lot of kids around this dog on a daily basis...i just wondered if he, as a cross, is classed as illegal? after all the dog attacks lately it's got me wondering and i'm a little worried for those kids.

Answer 1

In England cross breeds are fine.

Answer 2

Curtesy of DEFRAs website!

Section 1 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 prohibits four types of dog:

* the Pit Bull Terrier
* the Japanese tosa
* the Dogo Argentino
* the Fila Brasileiro

It is an offence to own or keep any of the above types of dog, unless it is on the Index of Exempted Dogs and is in compliance with the requirements. In any event it is an offence to breed from, sell or exchange (even as a gift) such a dog, irrespective of whether it has been placed on the Index of Exempted Dogs. Page 3 of Annex A provides further details about the Index.

It is important to note that, in the UK, dangerous dogs are classified by “type”, not by breed label. This means that whether a dog is considered dangerous, and therefore prohibited, will depend on a judgment about its physical characteristics, and whether they match the description of a prohibited 'type'. This assessment of the physical characteristics is made by a court. A leaflet providing guidance on the physical characteristics that a court would consider in reaching its judgement can be found below.

The 1991 Act was amended by the Dangerous Dogs (Amendment) Act 1997. The 1997 Act removed the mandatory destruction order provisions of the 1991 Act by giving the courts discretion on sentencing, and re-opened the Index of Exempted Dogs for those prohibited dogs which the courts consider would not pose a risk to the public. Only courts can direct that a dog can be placed on the list of exempted dogs.

Section 3 of the 1991 Act created a new offence of being an owner of a dog of any type or breed which is dangerously out of control in a public place or a non-public place in which it is not permitted to be.

Answer 3

The law has covered its self pretty well on this occasion , by referring to 'Pit bull type' rather than just pit bull as a distinct breed, so any cross breed that closely resembles one of the banned animals , is also banned.
Now the question also arose recently about one of these banned dogs being locked up in private grounds as a guard dog, the answer was that a banned dog is a banned dog no matter where it was kept.
The times that these dogs have attacked children or adults are very rare, but as the recent case in the UK shows, it does happen, a very young child was killed, and the kids Gran was injured during the attack, so once is enough!
What you do about the dog you know about is down to your conscience, who would want to own a dog of this type and why?
If in doubt report it to the police, let them sort it out, I dont think they will want any come backs if a kid gets harmed and they knew a banned dog was in the area, do you? You will have done all that you think fit.

Answer 4

I work with dogs for a living both training and running a boarding business. I am currently training to be an animal behaviourist. In my honest opinion no dog is inherently aggressive. I have had more dog bites and attempted bites from small little lap dogs who stupid idiot owners don't make any attempt to train as they think it's acceptable to not bother training them. Any dog can be trained to be aggressive. Border collies have been my biggest nightmare as they are highly strung yet nobody moans about them as they are perceived to be well natured. Obviously this answer slightly strays from the question but it's a valid point. For example everybody loves a Labrador and assumes they are family dogs yet that poor french lady who had a face transplant was savaged by one !!! So where do you draw the line. The answer is the stupid morons that buy these dogs because it makes them look hard should be put down. I have seen these idiots actively try to make their dog hard because it makes them look good. So in all honesty don't blame the dog blame the owner with one brain cell. The problem with any bull breed however and this includes many dogs that are legal is that if they do kick off they can be very hard to stop. This includes staffies English bull terriers and Bull mastiff. Any of these dogs could kill a small child it's just the unfortunate that this type of dog gravitates towards the morons of the world. So to answer your question if your friends dog is great with kids don't be any more worried than if it was any other breed of dog. All dogs can harm but if it has been well socilaised then it should be as fine as nay other dog. In fact many bull breeds are extremely loyal and affectionate towards humans but can be very antagonistic towards other dogs.

Answer 5

sfc - Too funny. We do that a lot!!

I know here in the states in the area Im in wherever the "pit bull" is banned so are the mixes. Its basically up to each police officer or animal control officer to make the call as to if it has pit in it. Its now up to them because there were so many people getting vets to say they were american bulldog mixes or boxer mixes and getting around the laws cause the judges didn't have the slightest idea what a pit looked like.

We do still have some areas you can have them but they have to be tattoed, microchipped, altered and contained within a secure kennel with a roof inside a secure fence line and at least a half mil in liability insurance. You have to fill out paperwork at your local police station and submit photos of the dog.

Its truly a labor of love for those that do this. But these are responsible owners!!

Answer 6

I believe the dog may be illegal it sounds like potentially the dog may be a cause for concern. overall i cant say but are the owners responsible? But i dont think any dog should be left alone with children.you are right to be concerned but the bad press wrongly gives pitbulls a bad name because there are more lovely pitbulls out there than bad ones.Pitbulls are not a pure bred breed they are derived from staffies crossed with something else

Answer 7

Yes Laura, Pit bulls are banned in the UK. Along with a few other breeds(Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino & Fila Brasileiro) under the dangerous dogs act 1991. All were castrated (so that they would die out), tattooed and recorded. All owners were ordered to muzzle theirs. As for crossbreeds, I don't think that they were included. Mind you. They were all castrated such a long time ago I am interested to know how your friend has any pit bull in their dog? One thing though....never heard him bark and he is the quietest dog you know.......but has attacked other dogs????? mmmmmmmm.....

Answer 8

People should have freedom of choice, but let's face it - why would you want to own a dog which is known to have an unpredictable nature and considered potentially dangerous?

I think the truth is, most pit (or staff) owners like the idea of owning this type of animal as a number (not all I hasten to add) are as unpredictable socially as their pets. This makes for a frightening and formidable combination.

Answer 9

Probaly so if they no at all. Anything with Pitt Bull is not allowed because a pit bull is across breed already. Now if you couldn't tell it had pitt blood it probably would not be an issue. by the way I love my Pitt Bull. His name is SER Charles.

Answer 10

He would still be illegal because he has pitbull in him. They can still turn on you any time just like a full blooded pit.