Government targets ‘ferocious’ canines breeds: Pitbull, Bulldog, Rottweiler among 23 facing ban

What raised eyebrows among veterinary service providers and civilians alike was the recent death of a 21-year-old woman from Maharashtra's Kolhapur due to rabies, three days after she completed the anti-rabies vaccination course.

The aggressive dog breeds—Pitbull, Rottweiler, Terrier, Wolf Dog, and Mastiff—are prohibited from being kept as pets or for other uses because they represent a "danger to human life."

Flagging serious recent issues of human deaths due to dog bites by some ferocious breeds of dogs kept as pets, the department said it has received representations from citizens, citizen forums, and Animal Welfare Organisations (AWOs) to ban some of the breeds of dogs from being kept as pets and other purposes.

The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying had set up an expert committee under the chairmanship of the Animal Husbandry Commissioner with members from various stakeholder organisations and experts in view of the representations.

- A resident of Gwalior was attacked by his pet Rottweiler in January of this year. The dog bit the victim and tore flesh off his arms and legs, causing more than 60 wounds. According to an India Today report, the attack occurred when the man remembered he had forgotten to feed the dog during the day and went to provide food around midnight.

- A 7-year-old boy was attacked by a Pitbull in northwest Delhi while he was playing near his residence.

- In Vishwas Nagar, a Pitbull attack resulted in injuries for a two-year-old boy in March 2024.

- A Pitbull attacked a 1.5-year-old girl in the Burari Nagar Colony in Uttarakhand who later required 18 stitches after suffering three separate leg fractures and was also hospitalised for 17 days.

- According to the Times of India, in November 2023, a 65-year-old NRI who was visiting his son in Bengaluru was attacked by a Rottweiler in Malleswaram.

- In August 2022, a Pitbull that was out on a stroll with its owners mauled a 30-year-old woman in Gurugram.

According to a report in The Blackburn Romey, American Pitbull Terrier, Rottweiler, Husky, Chow Chow, Great Dane, and Akita have reserved their spaces on the list of the 10 most dangerous dog breeds.

- Pitbulls have been banned or restricted in 30 nations, including the UK, Denmark, Colombia, Norway, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Malta, Spain, France, Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand.

- Rottweilers, aggressive dogs with powerful jaws, are banned or restricted in 18 countries, including Ecuador, Bermuda, France, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Qatar, Ukraine, Malaysia, and in many US states.

- Dogo Argentino has been banned or restricted in several countries, including Ukraine, Australia, Denmark, Hong Kong, Israel, and New Zealand.

- Terriers are banned/restricted in as many as 11 countries, including Australia, Bermuda, Colombia, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Singapore, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates.

- Mastiffs are also banned or restricted in Bermuda, Malaysia, Qatar, and Singapore.

In a written reply to the parliament in December 2023, the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying informed that the Central Government has notified the Animal Birth Control Rules 2023 under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 after superseding the Animal Birth Control (Dog) Rules, 2001, to control the population of Stray Dogs. The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying Jointly launched the National Action Plan for Dog Mediated Rabies Elimination in the year 2021.