Dog Control Service
Dangerous dogs
The Dog Control Cervice works closely with various partners to deal with dangerous dogs. Partners include Metropolitan Police Safer Neighbourhood Teams, Metropolitan Police Dog Section and their Status Dogs Unit, RSPCA and Battersea Dogs and Cats Home. The most common question asked is 'What is a dangerous dog?'
The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 (Section 1) defines the specific breeds that are banned from the UK. These are:
- American Pitbull
- Japanese Tosa
- Dogo Argentino
- Fila Brazilian
And any dog of any type designated for the purposes of this section by an order of the Secretary of State, being a type appearing to him to be bred for fighting or to have the characteristics of a type bred for that purpose.
Characteristics of breeds / cross breeds also need to be taken into consideration when assessing dogs that fall within this category, in particular the Pit Bull types. Many cross breeds such as cross Mastiffs, cross Staffordshire Bull Terriers, and cross American Bull Dogs are commonly mistaken as Pit Bull Terrier type dogs. Pit Bull Terriers are often given non-existent names to try and hide their identity such as the American Staffordshire Bull Terrier, the Irish Staffordshire Bull Terrier, the Irish Blue or Red Nose Staffordshire, or other variations of the same theme.
DEFRA provides information on Pitbull identification.There has been an amount of media attention given to dog owners who use their dogs to cause anti-social behaviour or crime. As a result, the dog breeds of choice by these people are often referred to as 'dangerous dogs'. We believe that every dog has the potential to be dangerous, or to bite, depending on the attitude and behaviour of its owner and how it has been brought up/trained. The following breeds of dog are often referred to as 'dangerous dogs' but are NOT listed as such in any legislation.
- Staffordshire Bull Terrier
- Bull Mastiff
- American Bull dog
- Presa Canario
- Cane Corsa
- Bull Terrier
- Rottweiler
- German Shepherd
- Dobermann
10. Akita
If you own a pit bull terrier type dog it must be muzzled and kept on a lead whilst in a public place. Let no one under the age of 16 handle the dog and you must have an valid exemption certificate from the Index of Exempted Dogs (Section 4b Dangerous Dogs Act 1991). As the index of exempted dogs is a closed register, only a Magistrate has the authority to open it and include a dog, on an individual application. If you believe that your dog is a Pit Bull Type you should contact us or the police for advice on how you can comply with the law.
DEFRA provides information on Pitbull identification.Section 1 Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 (Section 1(2)) says that no person shall-
a) breed, or breed from, a dog to which this section applies;
b) sell or exchange such a dog or offer, advertise or expose such a dog for sale or exchange;
c) make or offer to make a gift of such a dog or advertise or expose such a dog as a gift;
d) allow such a dog of which he is the owner or of which he is for the time being in charge to be in a public place without being muzzled and kept on a lead; or
If a dog owner is found guilty of an offence under section 1 the following penalties may be applied:
- Dog may be destroyed
- A control order made
- And/or fined up to £2,000 and
- And/or face up to 6 months in prison
Section 3 Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 says that it is an offence for a dangerously out of control dog to be in a public place. We can action before a dog has bitten anybody. If the dog in question is acting in such a way that someone thinks that they will be attacked, the offence is committed. The penalties are the same as if committing a Section 1 offence, including the possibility of the court ordering that the dog should be destroyed. Should the dog actually bite someone then the following penalties can apply:
- Dog may be destroyed
- A control order made
- And / or fined up to £5,000
- And / or face up to 2 years in prison.
As well as these penalties, if you are a council tenant, leaseholder or tenant of a leaseholder, the council's housing department may take action against you under the tenancy agreement for keeping a dangerous dog at the property.
