A total of 371 dogs have been seized as suspected XL bullies since the ban was introduced
Almost two years on from the introduction of a ban on owning XL bully dogs, statistics shared with WalesOnline have revealed exactly how many dogs have been seized by each police force in Wales since.
On February 1, 2024, it became illegal to own an XL bully dog in England and Wales unless a valid certificate of exemption is held. The new law also made it illegal to sell, give away, abandon one or let an XL bully stray and prevents people breeding an XL bully from another XL bully, or from having an XL bully in public without a lead and muzzle.
A series of Freedom of Information requests made by WalesOnline to the four Welsh police forces revealed exactly how many dogs had been seized across the country since the ban came into play last February. For the biggest stories in Wales first, sign up to our daily newsletter here.
It’s important to note that North Wales Police could only provide statistics from June this year because before then it dealt with dangerous dogs through an armed alliance with Cheshire Police.
The statistics show that across Wales a total of 371 dogs have been seized since the ban came into place.
Gwent Police has seized the highest number of dogs, with 140 suspected XL bullies, more than any other police force in Wales. South Wales Police has confiscated a further 81, and Dyfed-Powys Police, 49.
Of these 371 dogs, 273 have been found to be XL bullies. Out of the 221 dogs seized by Gwent Police, 155 were found to be XL bully banned breeds with three still waiting to be assessed.
Out of 81 dogs seized by South Wales Police, statistics show that 71 were found to be banned XL bullies. Under the Dyfed-Powys Police jurisdiction, 29 of the 49 dogs seized were assessed as being XL bullies, and 18 of the 20 dogs seized by North Wales Police were also deemed to be the banned breed.
In total, 99 of the 273 XL bullies have been put down by a vet. This is made up of 50 in the Gwent Police area, 28 by South Wales Police, 17 by Dyfed-Powys Police, and four in the North Wales Police jurisdiction.
68 of those seized were deemed not to be an XL bully following assessments and were subsequently returned to their owners.
There have been 60 cases where this happened with Gwent Police, four with South Wales Police, and two with both Dyfed-Powys Police and North Wales Police respectively.