All the banned dogs are categorized as “dangerous foreign breeds”. Most are powerful and aggressive. Let us take a look at these breeds.
Amid a rise in dog attacks across India, on Tuesday, 15 November, the district consumer disputes redressal forum in Gurugram issued directions to the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) to ban pet dogs of 11 foreign breeds with immediate effect.
The Gurugram consumer forum also ordered a payout of Rs 2 lakh as interim relief for a woman who suffered critical injuries after being bitten by a pet dog in Civil Lines on August 11. The dog’s breed was identified as Dogo Argentino.
The forum directed MCG to create a policy for pet dogs within three months.
BREEDS BANNED:
The 11 dog breeds that have been banned are:
- American Bulldog
- American Pitbull terriers
- Dogo Argentino
- Rottweiller, Boerboel
- Presa Canario
- Neapolitan Mastiff
- Wolfdog
- Cane Corso
- Bandog
- Fila Brasileiro
All these are categorized as “dangerous foreign breeds.”
On November 15, the forum said, “The MCG is directed to cancel all the licence/s if any, issued in this regard in favor of the dog owners for keeping the above-cited pet dogs with immediate effect and take into its custody the aforesaid dogs immediately.”
“Every registered dog shall wear a collar to which shall be attached a metal token coupled with a metal chain. The MCG is directed to require that one family keep only one dog and that whenever the registered dog is taken to public places, its mouth shall be properly covered with a net cap or otherwise,” the 16-page order added.
The forum has also ordered pet dog owners to carry dog poop bags, and poop scoops so that their pets don’t dirty public places.
A proposal to ban the domestication of three breeds of dogs – Pitbull, Rottweiler, and Dogo Argentino was given the go-ahead by the Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation in October.
Of late, there has been a spurt in dog attack incidents in Noida, with the most dreadful one being reported last month when a stray dog pulled out an infant’s intestines after pouncing on it.
DANGEROUS DOGS
The Dogo Argentino that bit the Gurugram woman has an unsteady temperament and was first bred for big-game hunting in Argentina. It is banned or has ownership restrictions in many countries, including Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Turkey. In the UK, owning a Dogo Argentino without lawful authority is illegal.
Even though the American bulldog bonds strongly with its owner, this breed should never be left alone or bored in a house. They can get aggressive if not properly trained and socialized early. They are a high-energy breed and can become agitated very quickly. However, they don’t attack without provocation.