Chris Andrews (Dublin Bay South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Today I met representatives of Working Animal Guardians, which is a dog rescue group. They are not saying everything the Minister is doing is wrong. They agree with a lot of what the Minister is doing but believes the ban is completely unfair. Working Animal Guardians is a very committed, compassionate group, is very reasonable and has a huge amount of experience with dogs and with XL bully dogs, in particular. It is important to listen to groups such as this and not ignore the stakeholders, which the Minister has done.

The ban on XL bully dogs is causing panic and mayhem within dog rescue groups. A ban is too extreme. There are much more humane ways to deal with this. Thousands of restricted dogs could be killed as a result of this ban because XL bully dogs are not a breed; they are a type of dog, which has a variety of breeds.

Thousands of restricted dogs could be killed as a result of this ban because XLs are not a breed, they are a type of dog that is a variety of breeds. Therefore, deciding on which dog is killed is going to be subjective and arbitrary, and that is simply unacceptable. We need to see an amnesty, and we need to see a time extension so that these XL bullies can live out their natural lives and not be killed.

It is important to note that the mental health of those who are working in the dog rescue organisations is absolutely on the floor. These organisations and those volunteering and working in rescue groups are very committed to dog welfare, and now the Minister wants them to do the very opposite of what is in their nature, namely, to oversee the killing of dogs. So many staff are devastated by what is to come. What dog will be next on the ban? Ten years ago, there were calls for other dogs to be banned. Why is the Minister not investing in the education and training of dog owners?

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