XL Bully owners flout Government ban as hundreds look to rehome dogs on Facebook

XL Bully owners are flouting a ban on the breed by arranging for dogs to be rehomed on Facebook.

Since 31 December it has been illegal to sell or give away an XL Bully dog or have one in a public place without a lead or a muzzle in England and Wales.

From 1 February it will be illegal to own an XL Bully without an exemption certificate. A similar ban is being implemented in Scotland.

Despite the ban, owners are openly defying the ban on social media, with groups looking to rehome the dogs attracting thousands of members.

One group with more than 7,000 members contains scores pictures of XL Bullies which owners are seeking to offload, with hundreds of people responding to posts looking for new owners.

Several images show XL Bullies – which have been linked to 10 deaths since 2021 – alongside children as they are advertised as “family” dogs, with owners adding the animals are “good with children” and just want “cuddles all the time”.

One member of the group said, referring to XL Bullies: “I’m from Scotland and would happily take a few dogs whether I’m allowed or not.”

While another post said about their XL Bully: “Meet Bobby, he is home and safe in Scotland. Regardless of what the future holds he’s not going anywhere.”

One member said she wanted to rehome her XL Bully, before adding: “she’s amazing with kids… but can be a little over excited…. she is obsessed with toys but unfortunately, they don’t last long lol but she tends to eat them so will need to be supervised with them…”

Other prospective XL Bully owners in the group said they would be prepared to rehouse the dogs, but stressed the dogs “must be good with young children… as we have a one-year-old.”

The ban comes after a spate of American XL Bully attacks in recent years, including the death of Bella-Rae Birch who was just 17 months old when she was killed in a dog attack at her home and 10-year-old Jack Lis who was mauled to death at a house in Caerphilly in 2021.

The American Bully XL has also been behind fatal attacks on adults, including Ian Price, 52, who died after suffering multiple injuries in the attack by two suspected American XL Bullies in September and Ian Langley, 54, who was mauled to death last October.

The deaths triggered a public outcry, which saw the Government add the breed to the list of dogs banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. At the time, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “It’s clear the American XL Bully dog is a danger to our communities. I’ve ordered urgent work to define and ban this breed so we can end these violent attacks and keep people safe.

Northern Ireland remains the last country in the UK still to announce a ban, with i having previously reported how owners have looked to exploit the loophole to move XL Bullies from England and Wales.

The Stormont executive has been suspended for two years, meaning ministers do not have the powers to ban the dog,

Meanwhile, the Government legislation will not extend to Northern Ireland, raising concerns about the potential for an influx of XL Bullies in the province.

However, its Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) said a decision on a ban could be made using the Northern Ireland Executive Formation Act 2022 – legislation that allows officials to make decisions without ministers.

A spokesperson for Daera said on Saturday it would “keep the situation here [Northern Ireland] under close and careful review,” adding “it is clear that a decision will need to be reached very shortly on the approach to be taken”.

Facebook’s parent company. Meta, was contacted for comment.