A life sentence for Lola under archaic law: “I feel paranoid and still panic when I see police as I think they’re going to take my beloved dog away again”
- National pet charity Blue Cross appeals for MPs to open their eyes to 30 years of cruel injustice and repeal law that imprisons and penalises innocent dogs
- Face of the campaign, Lola, a friendly bull breed deemed by court as ‘no danger to public safety’ is demonised due to looks alone
- Lola’s owner joins Blue Cross in calling for an end to poor kennel conditions and restrictions such as unnecessary muzzling, life on lead and anxiety and suffering for animals and owner
National pet charity Blue Cross is calling for urgent changes to ‘killer’ laws which sentences innocent dogs like Lola to a life under rule and condemns thousands to death each year, ahead of the 30th anniversary of the Dangerous Dogs Act on 12th August.
The face of their campaign is innocent family pet Lola, who was unable to leave her home for two months due to restrictions unjustly placed on her by a court.
Many owners of bull breeds are forced to look over their shoulder in fear of their innocent family pets being taken from them without warning into case kennels for days, months or even years.
18-month-old American bulldog/Staffordshire bull terrier cross Lola was seized from Anita Medhi’s home out of the blue in 2019 by police and kept for two nights.
Lola was ‘typed’ under the legislation and placed on the Exemption Index, despite the court ruling she was no danger to public safety after assessment.
Due to the stress of her ordeal, Lola began to urinate around the house once she was returned home - something she had never done before.
Worse still, Anita was unable to take her outside the home for two months because Lola feared wearing the muzzle now required by law in a public place for the rest of her life.
Two years on and despite Lola now accepting the muzzle after help from Blue Cross, Anita, 56, is still looking over her shoulder when she is out with her family pet in fear that they may have to relive the nightmare again.
In a letter to Environment Minister Zac Goldsmith this month, Anita wrote: “Since she was seized in August 2019, I have spent two years of my life to get my voice heard. Little is said of the trauma owners of these dogs endure when they are seized and the impact on their mental health and post-traumatic stress they continue to suffer, even if returned exempted. The fear never goes from you and impacts on your day to day life.
“I fully support the need for safety first and the need to protect the public at the highest level, but these family dogs , having been expertly assessed, surely have proven that it’s more likely other dogs and of course owners, that pose more of a threat.”
Rachael Myers, Animal Behaviourist at Blue Cross, said: “Lola was so subdued and looked really down in the dumps when I met her in 2019 as she hadn’t been able to leave the house for a month. It was clear she had been very stressed and low since being ripped away from her home and poor Anita had tried everything to try and get her to wear a muzzle.
“I could see she was a well socialised, well-loved family pet who clearly posed no danger to anyone around her.”
Over the next month Rachael worked with Lola, using positive reinforcement with treats to get her used to wearing the muzzle before a month later they and Anita went out for her first walk outside in over two months.
“She was such a friendly and sweet natured dog but she didn’t like the feel of the muzzle on her skin, or moving around with it on so progress was slow.
“I visited several times and Anita and I were in contact over the phone as she progressed. It was wonderful to see her get her freedom back, albeit wearing a muzzle, and I saw how she was around other dogs and she was great, very sociable and friendly.”
Lola was only away from home for two nights, but many owned dogs can be kept in police kennels for months, and even years, until they wait for a court date, causing severe and sometimes irreversible issues for these family pets and trauma to their owners. Meanwhile vets are forced to euthanize any stray dogs who are ‘typed’ as under the law charities are unable to rehome them.
Blue Cross is calling for Section 1 of the legislation, known as Breed Specific Legislation or BSL, to be repealed and for urgent changes to be made to the legislation. Anita has also launched her own petition calling on the Government to change the unfair legislation.
Becky Thwaites, Head of Public Affairs at Blue Cross, said: “Sadly there are thousands of dogs just like Lola who have not put a paw out of place but have to pay the price for this unjust law.
“Many dogs that are seized as illegal types are in fact well-behaved dogs with responsible owners, who just have the misfortune to have the wrong measurements.
“It is heart-breaking and extremely frustrating for all our teams when they are forced to euthanase an otherwise healthy and friendly pet, or in Lola’s case have their liberties curtailed, simply because the law states their looks deem them dangerous.
“The years following the implementation of the Dangerous Dogs Act have shown that vilifying certain breeds of dog does not serve to reduce the number of dog attacks, which have only increased.
“The government needs to focus on cracking down on dog owners who use their dogs for illegal and irresponsible purposes rather than banning breeds based solely on how they look.”
ENDS
Notes to editor:
- Blue Cross vets were forced to euthanize stray dog Duncan under the legislation as it is illegal to rehome a dog who has been ‘typed’ under Section One, also known as Breed Specific Legislation or BSL, of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
- Blue Cross is a national charity that has been helping sick, injured, abandoned and homeless pets for over 120 years. We help thousands of pets in need every month by providing veterinary care, expert behaviour help and find them loving homes. We also offer education for current and future pet owners plus pet bereavement support for those who have lost their pet companion. Pets help us in so many ways and they depend entirely on us, with your support we can give back to more pets in need. Pets change lives. We change theirs.
- For more information visit bluecross.org.uk
Dangerous Dogs Act 1991
- Under Section One of the law, a dog that looks like a banned type can be seized and killed based on their head and body measurements alone.
- Referred to as ‘breed specific legislation’, or ‘BSL’, the law doesn’t actually recognise a dog’s family tree, or pedigree. A dog’s breed, a dog’s parents’ breeds, DNA testing and behaviour are not taken into account.
- Dogs are classed as 'section one' breeds if they look like one of the four banned breeds - Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Fila Brasileiro or Dogo Argentino, and have the same measurements as them.
- Pitbull terrier types are defined using head and body measurements based on an American breed standard for show dogs from the 1970s. Enforcers use a tape measure for this test. No information has ever been issued to enforcers about how to identify the three other banned types by the UK government.
- Stray dogs that are ‘typed’ cannot be rehomed by anyone by law, and must be euthanzied, while courts can place owned dogs on the Index of Exempt Dogs if they rule that they don’t pose a danger to public safety.
- Owned dogs who are found to be of type but prove to the court that they are not a danger to the public are added to the Index of Exempted Dogs. They are allowed to return home under certain conditions, including that they are kept on a lead and muzzled in a public place and even when travelling in a car. These restrictions are in place for the rest of the dog’s life.