XL Bully ban: What changes on 1 February for dog owners - as owning illegal bullies becomes a crime

Time has run out to get XL bully-type dogs in England and Wales an exemption, with the breed now officially banned.

This Thursday (1 February) marks the second phase of the government's breed ban coming into effect. From this date, it is a criminal offence to own a dog meeting the XL bully criteria without an exemption, and owners must have insurance in case their dog hurts someone. All XL bullies already need to be muzzled and on a leash when out in public, and can no longer be rehomed under phase one of the ban, which kicked in on 31 December.

MPs first took aim at American XL bullies, a fairly new breed derived, in part, from pit bulls, in late September 2023. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak later announced the breed would be banned on the back of two serious attacks involving the breed - including the death of Staffordshire man Ian Price, who died of his injuries after trying to defend his elderly mother from two loose XL bullies.

Defra says more than 35,000 owners have registered their XL bullies for an exemption certificate, while 150 have requested compensation for euthanising their pets. But there may still be thousands of illegal dogs without exemption certificates - and police are now warning XL bullies whose owners have not complied with the legislation may be put down.

But what actually changes for XL bully dog owners on Thursday, and will police be able to seize or euthanise dogs? Here's everything you need to know:

What changes on 1 February for XL bully owners?

From Thursday, you are committing a criminal offence if you own a dog meeting the government's XL bully criteria and don't have an exemption, or are otherwise not following the breed ban rules.

This criteria is based on your dog's physical characteristics - not breeding or DNA. If you are reported to police and their experts deem your dog to be an XL bully, you face a criminal record and an unlimited fine - and you may lose your dog.

You must also hold active third party public liability insurance for your dog - with cover staring from 1 February at the latest. The policy must renew annually for the rest of the dog's life, and must cover the policyholder for death or bodily injury to any person caused by the dog.

Your dog should also be microchipped already, unless your dog had a medical reason for this to be delayed which you notified Defra of when applying to exempt them. In that case, you will have been given a date to provide proof of microchipping by. The same goes for spaying and neutering your pup, and you should make an appointment if you have not already.

If your dog was over one year old as of 31 January, you and your vet need to provide evidence it has been neutered by 30 June. If it is younger, this evidence must be provided by 31 December.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said in a statement: “The ban on XL Bullies is now in place, meaning it is illegal to own one of these dogs unless it has been registered. We have delivered our pledge to bring in this important measure to protect public safety, and we expect all XL Bully owners to comply with the strict conditions.”

The government will continue supporting the police to make sure the ban is effectively enforced, and ministers met with police chiefs this week to discuss their preparations to implement the ban.

Will my XL bully be taken by force, or put down?

If you have opted not to comply with the new laws or get an exemption for your dog, this is now a risk. Police are urging members of the public to report XL bully owners who are not following the rules, so that they can investigate. There are 137 dog legislation officers across the country, with at least one in every force.

Officers can seize dogs and take them to a police kennels, until a court decides if they should either be destroyed or deemed not a danger to public safety. If met with resistance from owners, police will take “proportionate action with minimum use of force” to seize their dogs.

Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hobrough told PA: “I would urge everybody to comply with the law and the legislation. If people haven’t put their dog on the database already they are committing an absolute offence.

“We are as police [are] going to be enforcing the law. We didn’t create the law but we do enforce the law and we will have to execute warrants and seize dogs and take action towards such dog owners," he said. “I would encourage strongly people to be compliant if that were the situation with their own dogs because one of the very tests that is made about a dog or an owner [in court] is that the dog is not aggressive, but also that the owner is fit and responsible and not aggressive also.

“So if either of those things were not complied with, then there would be no option for a court then but to destroy the dog," he continued.