In England they want it outlaw Pit Bull XLs everywhere and foreverand there is enormous debate around theDangerous Dogs Act 1991 update which after banning from the UK breeds like Tosa, American pit bull terrier, Dogo Argentino and Fila Brasileiroat the end of 2023 it also included dogs in the ban razza American Bully XLperfected in the 1990s in the United States starting from specimens of American pit bull terriers and which until now had escaped the ban with a trick, i.e. by claiming that the ban did not cover the new breed, even if it is essentially a larger Pit Bull.
The debate is such and so much so that even The Economist, one of the most prestigious periodicals of political-economic information and historically liberal in naturein the last few days he has published 2 articles with more than eloquent titles: How XL Bullies became such dangerous dogs and Why XL Bully dogs should be banned everywhere, arguing that these dogs “large, strong and bred to kill, they are too dangerous to live with people“.
In England they want to outlaw Pit Bull XL everywhere
For millennia, humans selected dogs with helpful or attractive traits and bred them. That’s why bloodhounds point, retrievers retrieve, and most companion dogs are friendly. And generally, even when their jaws may be powerful enough to crush bones or maul us, they’re much more likely to give you a slobbery kiss than a bite.
However, it is enough to reel off some news events to understand that some dogs have been bred for aggression and are creating social alarm. In America, in Tennessee, in 2022, two children were killed and their mother mutilated as she tried to save them from the family’s pair of Extra Large (or “XL”) Pit Bull Terriers. Last September in England, two closely related XL American Bully dogs killed Ian Price, 52, in his mother’s garden after jumping from the window of a nearby house to get to him. In January, an XL Bully in Germany fatally maimed its owner and had to be put down as it lunged at police trying to help the man. In Italy we have just had the case of Cutrofiano with a 5 year old girl bitten in the head by the family dog while she was sleeping.
Statistics in the UK
According to Bully Watch UK, a pressure group on the issue, in Britain, the number of fatal dog attacks has quadrupled since the XL Bully was introduced in the country, going from four in 2014 to 16 in the first nine months of 2023. Overall, XL Bullies were reported to be responsible for 44% of dog attacks in 2023despite making up less than 1% of the UK dog population.
In America, Pit Bull attacks were responsible for nearly 70% of dog attack deaths in 2019, and are becoming increasingly common, according to DogsBite.org, a watchdog.
Selected and bred for combat
According to supporters of the ban, and culling, of Pit Bull XLs, their ancestry helps explain their aggression. In general, pit bull terriers, from which the XL derives, were bred to win dog fights, a practice now illegal in the UK as in America and in other countries around the world and which nevertheless continues to proliferate in the underworld of clandestine betting and in criminals.
The reason why breeders would progressively select animals that developed a tendency to attack by the throat, to attack without warning and to ignore the pain. That is, those with tenacity and “gameness”, the ability to continue fighting despite serious injuries. Suffice it to say that already in “White Fang” Jack London called similar dogs “death that attacks”.
Focus on the fact, not the race
The debate is open and heated even among experts: in the face of trainers and animal rights associations (such as the Dog Control Coalition) who argue that any type of dog can be trained to be aggressiveunderline how the data from the British National Health Service are misleading since they give the same weight to a pinch from a Chihuahua and an attack from an XL Bully, they invite focus on the fact, not the raceand call for laws to hold individual dogs and their irresponsible owners to account for bad behavior, there are also veterinary geneticists and other experts who argue that these dogs, being bred for aggression, are likely to inherit aggression, and for how well you treat and educate them, a part of them may explode unexpectedly.
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2024-03-29 11:48:09
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