Known for its large size and striking features, it is the largest of the American bully type breeds. There have been several reports across Ireland and the UK of certain dogs of this breed displaying aggressive behaviour and seriously injuring people.
Here is everything we know about the breed.
What is an XL bully?
An American bully XL are not a registered breed and have been crossbred from several different breeds.
Due to not being a recognised breed, they are identified through certain physical characteristics.
XL Bully’s stand at 48-51 centimetres, have a large and broad head, a muscular and arched neck, a heavily muscled body with a broad chest, a medium length tail that is low set as well as a glossy and smooth coat.
Why are they so dangerous?
Their powerful jaws inflict more damaging wounds than other dog breeds, leading to broken bones, shredded skin and damaged nerves.
Once they grip they don’t let go, leading to crushing or tearing injuries.
Dog behaviourists say they are bred for tenacity, to be strong and powerful and to be “full of energy”.
While they can be considered loyal, friendly and family dogs, if they are brought up “in the wrong hands” they can become dangerous.
Restricted dog breeds and the rules in Ireland
How many deaths/injuries are they reported to have been involved in in the UK?
Between 2021 and 2023, around half of fatal dog attacks in the UK were caused by a single breed, the American Bully XL.
In a number of cases, XL bullies are known to have killed their owners, including a London woman aged in her 50s named locally as Angeline Mahal, in May.
Other people killed by XL bullies include 68-year-old Esther Martin, 54-year-old Ian Langley, 52-year-old Ian Price, 65-year-old Ann Dunn, 17-month-old Bella-Rae Birch and 10-year-old Jack Lis.
How has Northern Ireland and the UK clamped down on them?
The UK government has added XL bully types to the list of banned dogs, the first to be added since The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 was introduced.
It’s now illegal to breed, sell, advertise, exchange, gift, rehome, abandon or allow XL bully type dogs to stray in England and Wales.
Since February 2024, it has been a criminal offence to own an XL bully without an exemption certificate.
Police can seize unregistered prohibited dogs, and their owners face a criminal record and unlimited fine.
Northern Ireland has made it that people who wish to keep an XL bully will have to register their dog, with owners facing some of the restrictions in place in the rest of the UK:
As a result, dogs must be neutered, and muzzled and kept on a lead in public. It will be illegal to breed, abandon, rehome, sell, buy, or transfer ownership of XL bullies.
However, it is not clear when the new requirements will take effect in the north.
What are we doing here in Ireland?
Ireland is yet to introduce an outright ban on any dogs, but has restrictions as part of the Control of Dogs Regulations, 1998.
Owners of these dogs, of which the XL Bully is included as a crossbreed, must have their dogs muzzled in a public space and be led by a sufficiently strong chain or leash, not exceeding two metres in length, by a person over the age of sixteen years, who is capable of controlling the dog, the law states.
However, when Justice Minister Helen McEntee was asked today if there should be an outright ban on certain dog breeds in Ireland, she said: “Personally, I think there should be, yes.”
“Where a dog is known to be potentially vicious… where there is a pattern of particular dogs, then we do need to go further here.”
