Buckie couple make 'don't blame the dogs' plea as Bully XL ban looms
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BLAME the right end of the leash – that was the plea from two Buckie American Bully XL owners as moves to ban the breed gather pace.
Karen Taylor and her husband Aaron are the proud owners of Ghost, a four-year-old Bully XL who they have had since he was a pup. Following a spate of attacks by the breed south of the border, the Taylors feel that it is time to point the finger those who really bear the brunt of the blame in the face of the ongoing media storm.
Karen said: "When this all started with the Bullies my first thoughts were 'Oh, my God, my life is going to be mental' because I've had people cross the road when I've been out with my Rotties [Rottweilers].
"I thought that this is going to be even worse.
"People are bad naming the dogs without knowing any facts about them. They are blaming the wrong end of the leash.
"I'm just shocked and disgusted at the ban.
"It's a cop out. I've taken every precaution with our dog; he's been neutered, he's third party insured, he's trained and never gets off the lead unless we're away out in the middle of nowhere. I'm not a fan of muzzling but if that's what the new regulations say I've got to do to take my boy out then I'll do it."
While the UK's chief veterinary officer Prof Christine Middlemiss has ruled out removal or destruction of existing Bully XLs in the country owners will have to register their dogs and keep them muzzled in public. Should that change, the couple said they would "rather move out of the country" than surrender their dogs.
Aaron went on to slam the government for taking the "coward's" approach to the issue by opting for a ban.
He continued: "This a coward's way out on behalf of the Prime Minister and the government, it's a very cowardly approach.
"It's not the dog that you need to bad mouth it's the owner that needs to be held accountable. There's hundreds of different breeds out there, including dogs that are already on the banned list. The problem is dogs being handled by immature, inappropriate, inexperienced owners and it's just ruined it for everybody else.
"You got folks that buy these kinds of dogs because they want to be cool or they want to be gangsters or this, that and the next thing but they're just going to move on to something else [if a breed is banned].
"To me banning a breed is like trying to ban people, you shouldn't be able to ban anything regarding life. You can't ban a race of people so why ban a breed of dog?
"It's 100 per cent blaming the wrong end of the leash. You've the chance you end up with a dog that's complete and utter nuts and wants to attack anything and everything but you need to do the work and do the training. There's plenty of people out there with loads of experience and there's all those facilities out there but if you're wanting a dog to be like that [out of control] then it'll be like that."
He went on to call for a licensing system, similar to that used to drive different types of vehicles, to qualify people to own certain breeds of dogs. Under this system owners would have to "take full responsibility" for the actions of their dogs.
Ghost is the Taylors' first Bully XL after Karen – who has 26 years of experience under her belt with bigger breeds of dog, owning, breeding and showing Rottweilers – "fell in love" with the pup whose mum, Rogue, is owned by the couple's daughter.
Karen said: "I never imagined ever having that breed, it wasn't one I was into.
"I went to see him and it was like 'I've got to have him', he really stood out. I did quite a bit of research into the breed before I took him."
While many portrayals of Bully XLs have cast them as aggressive bordering on the psychotic, Karen said this was not an image she recognised in Ghost and the vast majority of well-trained members of the breed.
WATCH: Ghost pops in to say hello!
She said: "They're nanny dogs.
"When our granddaughter came to stay with us two years ago I was terrified. Ghost is quite a hyper dog and I thought 'How's this going to turn out? Am I going to rehome Ghost?' but that dog changed overnight. He came in to see who was here, he'd never seen these little people before, and he just became her protector.
"When she was watching TV he'd sit and watch TV. I'd be out with her in the pram and people would come up to look at the baby and Ghost wasn't keen on them going near her. He's very protective but in a good way.
"She'll play with him, roll on top of him or sit on him, he's really really tolerant of her.
"They're family dogs – 80 per cent of them are family dogs – it's just the wrong people who've got them."
In addition to the Taylors Ghost shares the house with Riley, a Rottweiler, and Paris, a Chihuahua. However, top of the tree on the pet front in the household is Conner the cat, who revels in the nickname Boss Hogg after the Dukes of Hazzard TV series character.
What is the American Bully XL and what does the ban mean?
AMERICAN Bully XLs are believed to have first appeared on the scene back in the 1980s.
They are across between American pit bull terriers and American Staffordshire terriers and come in four variations – standard, pocket, classic and Bully XL.
While Ghost clocks in at 48kg in weight, the XLs can reach 55-60kgs.
Bully XLs are not classed as a breed by the Kennel Club in the UK and before a ban can be brought in under the 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act work must be done to define its characteristics. The legislation prohibits the breeding, selling or gifting of breeds which have been banned unless going abroad prohibited, while the dogs had to be muzzled and on a lead when in public.
Four breeds are currently banned under the act: American pit bull terrier; Japanese Tosa; Dogo Argentino; Fila Brasileiro.
Many animal charities, including the Scottish SPCA, believe that while action has to be taken breed-specific bans are ineffective in practice.
A spokesperson for the Scottish SPCA said: "We appreciate the debate over XL Bullies is a complex one and we fully support any efforts to improve public safety through more effective dog controls. And, we do recognise these attacks have created an urgent issue which needs to be resolved.
"We feel a full ban on XL Bullies will not effectively deal with the root problem and that is why we’ve taken the position we have.
"We, alongside many of the UK’s largest animal welfare charities on the Dog Control Coalition, want a constructive, nuanced debate about the steps we can take to do so. Our position is based on decades of experience assessing all types of dogs and seeing how the Dangerous Dogs Act has proven ineffective when used to ban other breeds.
"The law must be updated to allow for more effective enforcement and early interventions, which helps identify dogs and their owners more quickly if there are concerns about that dog’s behaviour. It also must allow for full traceability of all types of dogs being bred and sold. This has to be a part of a wider effort to tackle unscrupulous breeders and deter people from breeding any type of dog in conditions which may lead to behavioural issues.
"Once again, I want to reiterate that opposing a ban does not mean we oppose any action being taken. We know these attacks are an urgent issue. We just want to find a solution which we feel will actually address the problem."
WATCH: Scottish SPCA Chief Superintendent Mike Flynn explains why the charity do not believe breed-specific bans are the answer.
The spokesperson went on to state that since the act came into force in 1991 it had led to many dogs being seized and destroyed despite being friendly.
Furthermore, according to the charity identifying breeds accurately is difficult due to similarities with other breeds, as has been the case with pit bull types. XL Bullies are not a defined breed at the moment, and a ban will likely affect well-behaved dogs based on how they look. Sadly, this has been the case with some dogs which have some similarities to banned breeds since 1991 but have assessed by the Scottish SPCA as being very well-behaved and friendly.
Since the Prime Minister’s announcement, the spokesperson noted that the charity had already received multiple calls from distraught XL Bully owners who are concerned about the lack of detail around this proposed ban, and what it might mean for them and their dogs.
XL Bullies have grown in popularity in the past few years to the point where they have become valuable commodities. This has led to irresponsible breeding and ownership rising, which can contribute to increased likelihood of aggression in dogs of any breed. Banning more types will not, in the charity's view, protect the public. An unintended consequence of a ban could be to further glamourise XL Bullies among the type of people who are not suitable to breed and sell them.
