Fatal dog attacks are thankfully rare, but in the past five years, 31 people have died in the UK as a result of a dog bite. The main legislation protecting the public in this regard is the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, which essentially prohibits the ownership of particular types of dogs bred for fighting, makes it a criminal offence for a dog to be dangerously out of control, and allows for the destruction and disqualification of dangerous dogs. It’s important to know which dog breeds are banned in the UK under this Breed Specific Legislation (BSL), as it is not only illegal to own them, but also to sell, abandon, give away or breed from them.
There are only a handful of banned dog breeds, however even if your dog is not a pure-bred, if it matches many of the characteristics, it may be considered a banned type.
In the UK, it’s against the law to own certain types of dog listed below.
2DF8G0G American Pit Bull Terrier running in the field
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Pit bull terrier
Pit bulls have been bred for fighting, including bulls and bears, for hundreds of years – until these sports were banned in the 19th century. Following this, some owners still bred pit bulls to fight each other, which have given them a reputation as an aggressive dog.
D35HPR Dog Tosa Inu / Japanese Mastiff adult and puppies in a wood
(Image credit: Alamy Stock Photo)
Japanese Tosa
This breed was (and still is) a fighting dog in Japan, where it fought in the pit without barking, according to the Japanese rules which required fights to take place in silence. This heavy and powerful dog is very rare outside its native country, but its reputation as a fighter led to it being banned in the UK and many other countries.
This huge, white dog has fighting breeds in its ancestry, but is primarily kept for hunting large game such as boar and pumas in its native Argentina. They are also used in some countries for police and military work. Their reputation as a fierce guard dog with considerable size and strength has resulted in them being banned or restricted in several countries.
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R47N08 puppy of Fila Brasileiro (Brazilian Mastiff)
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Fila Brasileiro
Also known as the Brazilian Mastiff, the Fila Brasileiro was originally used as a hunting and working dog. Attacking is not actually their modus operandi, instead their method is to catch the prey and hold it while the hunter catches up. As such, they are useful dogs to keep on farms to protect herds from predators. However, these protective instincts in a large, powerful dog mean they are on the banned list in many countries.
2R6CMF9 Front close up view of an American XL bully dog.
(Image credit: Alamy Stock Photo)
American XL Bully
XL bullies are the newest addition to the list, having been banned in England and Wales since February 2024, unless you have a certificate of exemption. A fairly new type altogether, only arriving in the UK in 2014-2015, having been developed as a talismanic companion dog in the US over the past 30 years. They have plenty of pit bull and bulldog in their ancestry, and have enormous strength relative to their size. They are not recognised as a specific breed either by the American or the UK Kennel Club, but in the US is considered a type of American Bulldog.
What does Breed Specific Legislation mean for banned dogs?
If you have one of these banned dogs or one that has the appearance of one, the police or local council dog warden can remove it from your ownership even if has not been acting dangerously and no one has filed a complaint. They need a warrant to do this in a private place, but in public this is not necessary.
In court, there are a few potential outcomes:
1. You can prove your dog is not a banned type. Your dog will be returned to you.
2. If you plead guilty or your dog is deemed to be a banned type, you can get an unlimited fine and/or be sent to prison, and the dog will be destroyed.
3. The court may decide the dog poses no danger to the public, and will give you a certificate of exemption, permitting you to keep the dog. This comes with certain caveats, including neutering, muzzling and being kept in a secure place.
In the US, the rules are different. There is no breed specific legislation at a federal level, however around 1,000 cities and states have legislation regulating certain types of dog, based on breed and overall appearance. This includes not only pit bull types, but dobermans and rottweilers, and the rules may vary from enforced spaying or neutering to euthanasia.
There is plenty of controversy surrounding the banned dogs list, with supporters of the breeds arguing that their bad reputation is due to unethical breeding and handling. The RSPCA have pointed out that in the majority of dog-related incidents causing deaths, the breeds involved were not on the banned list. However between 2021-2023, XL bullies were responsible for 10 of the 19 deaths, and have since been put on the list of banned breeds in the UK.
The RSPCA says: “There’s no robust research to demonstrate that dogs bred for fighting are naturally aggressive towards people or that they are unique in the way they can bite.
“Aggressive behaviour can be influenced by factors such as how they’re bred, reared and experiences throughout their life. Breed isn’t a good way to predict risk of aggression.”
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Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on horses and dogs. Her reporting CV includes the Paris Olympics, European championships, Aachen World Equestrian Festival and World Cup finals. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs. Now, her constant companion is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.
