A police force has apologised after putting down a family’s pet XL bully dog by mistake.
Lancashire Police said it has given the family an ‘unreserved apology’ for euthanising the seized dog, named Bruno, while the owners were in the process of applying for an exemption to keep him.
In a statement, the force said Bruno was put down due to an ‘administration error’.
Lizzi Collinge, MP for the local area Morecambe and Lunesdale, said: ‘This should be a ‘never event’ and I have taken this issue up directly with the police.’Â
The Government brought in the ban on the muscular canines after they were blamed for maulings which led to at least 11 deaths since 2021. Those killed ranged from 17 months to 84 years of age.Â
Lancashire Police said it has given the family an ‘unreserved apology’ for euthanising the seized dog, named Bruno, while the owners were in the process of applying for an exemption to keep him
Lizzi Collinge, MP (left) for Morecambe and Lunesdale, said: ‘This should be a ‘never event’ and I have taken this issue up directly with the police.’
‘In August we seized an XL bully dog from an address in Morecambe as part of our powers under the Dangerous Dogs Act as XL Bully dogs are a banned breed,’ the statement said.
‘A file was being prepared for consideration of the owner being prosecuted for the relevant offences.
‘However, unfortunately, due to an administration error the dog was subsequently euthanised before the court hearing.’
The force added that it has introduced a process ‘to ensure the same mistake cannot be made again’.
Lizzi Collinge, MP Morecambe and Lunesdale, told the BBC that she is demanding answers over the incident.
‘This should be a ‘never event’ and I have taken this issue up directly with the police,’ she said.
She added: ‘I was shocked to see that a much-loved pet dog, Bruno, was wrongly euthanised whilst in police care.
‘Processes should have been in place to ensure this never happened.
‘There is a legal process when dogs are under police care and it appears this hasn’t been followed.
‘I will continue to support the family and I appeal to the police to disclose how they are changing their practices so that this is something that can never happen again.’
The XL bully is the fifth dog breed to be banned in the UK, following a spate of attacks on people last year.
Other banned breeds include the pit bull terrier, Japanese rosa, fila brasiliero and dogo argentino.
But attacks have continued despite the ban as just two days after it came into effect, Esther Martin, 68, was killed by XL bullies inside a property in Jaywick, Essex. Her daughter claimed the dogs were unregistered.
Four-year-old XL bully Coby during a protest in Dublin’s city centre against a planned ban on XL Bully dogs in Ireland
The XL bully is the fifth dog breed to be banned in the UK, following a spate of attacks on people last year
The XL bully ban, which was criticised heavily by lovers of the breed, makes it a criminal offence to own, breed or sell the animals without permission, and those who have the exemption need to neuter their dogs and have third-party liability insurance.
Doug Smith member of Bully Watch, said: ‘We will likely be seeing more of these attacks. They won’t go away.’
‘It is a really tricky and messy situation for police to respond to. They can’t go door to door to assess the owners and assess the dogs.
‘The ban hasn’t had an impact on the ownership of these dogs and they are being rehomed to unsuitable homes illegally.
‘People are rehoming these dogs to other irresponsible owners. It is a case of idiots giving their dogs to other idiots. These people think they are responsible owners when they aren’t.
‘It is quite unprecedented. They have put this ban in place and people are still wanting to take these dogs into these homes.’
