MPs call for bully deadline extension

A group of MPs has urged Defra to extend the deadline for younger XL bully dogs to be neutered once an ownership ban comes into force.

The Efra select committee has backed the idea, initially proposed by the BVA, amid growing fears about the procedure’s health effects and wider unease about the legislative plan itself.

But, while the department claimed its plans already account for the issues associated with the procedures, it is also facing calls for the entire legislative process to be put on hold.

Under the present plans, all XL bully dogs that are below a year old will need to be neutered by the end of this year, with older dogs undergoing the procedure by the end of June.

New regulations

But although breeding from an XL bully, along with selling and abandoning them, is now illegal following the implementation of new regulations from 31 December, the BVA wants the neutering deadline extended into next year for dogs aged seven months or younger when the ownership ban is implemented.

That position has now been endorsed in a letter to ministers from the committee’s chairperson, Sir Robert Goodwill.

Although he stressed the committee’s support for the ban, he acknowledged the measure was “imperfect”, along with the ethical and logistical concerns raised about it within the veterinary sector.

The letter continued: “Regarding neutering, if a large breed dog is neutered too young, scientific evidence suggests that this may increase their risk of developmental orthopaedic problems, alongside other medical conditions.

“As such, we recommend the department extend the deadline for neutering large dogs that are under seven months of age on 31 January 2024, to the end of June 2025.”

Consideration

While the BVA told Vet Times it had not received an update from the department in response to its proposal, the committee was told it would be considered when minister Lord Benyon and a senior official gave evidence last month.

When asked whether it planned to adopt the suggestion, a Defra spokesperson said: “We recognise that neutering at a very young age is not advisable, which is why we’ve already provided an extended neutering deadline for young XL bully dogs.

“Neutering is a population control measure that is necessary to protect the public and will also prevent owners from committing an offence given breeding from XL bully type dogs will be banned from 31 December. We will provide a full response to the letter in due course.”

Further pressure

But the department has been put under further pressure after the Dog Control Coalition, of which the BVA is a member, issued an open letter demanding a delay to the ban’s implementation.

It accused Defra of failing to properly communicate to the public how they can comply with the law, condemned the compensation offered for euthanasia costs as “inadequate” and warned owners, vets and rescue centres needed time to “do the best for the dogs in our care”.

The Efra committee also called for greater clarity and improved guidance on breed recognition, amid fears some dogs may be misidentified as XL bullies by owners who fear being caught out by the new law, plus the prompt release of details about a deregistration process to deal with such cases.

More than 4,000 owners are thought to have submitted applications for exemption certificates so far and, speaking to the BBC, UK CVO Christine Middlemiss urged owners to act in a precautionary manner and seek an exemption for their dog if it meets a “significant” number of the published assessment criteria.

But the coalition said the ban and its timing was placing “a huge emotional and logistical burden on rescue centres and vet teams”.