Blue Cross ‘pleased’ with Efra inquiry into Dangerous Dogs Act

Blue Cross has said it was ‘pleased’ to see that the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee (Efra) was launching an inquiry into the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.

The charity said that 27 years later after the Act was brought in, it was clear that this law has been ‘completely ineffective’ at reducing incidents involving dangerous dogs.

Section One of the Dangerous Dogs Act (1991) outlaws four types of dog, the pit bull terrier types, Japanese tosa, dogo Argentino, and fila Brasilerio. The law makes it illegal to own, sell, breed, give away or abandon one of these types of dog.

Blue Cross wants to see an end to legislation that singles out dogs based on looks alone and have the focus switched to prevention. The charity will be submitting evidence to the inquiry and hopes that the government will take note of Efra’s findings and review the legislation.

Becky Thwaites, Blue Cross head of public affairs, said: “As an organisation, we believe that this law unfairly targets breed types because of the way they look. We know that each year, many Section One dogs are seized unnecessarily and can spend months stuck in kennels which negatively impacts on their welfare. Sadly, too many of these dogs will end up being put to sleep despite the fact that most of them could go back to their homes and continue to make loving family pets.”