Dogs | Purebred dog enthusiasts plan court challenge of ban on 20 breeds of ‘ferocious’ canines

A nationwide club of purebred dog enthusiasts plans to challenge a directive from the Centre to states banning the import, breeding, and sale of over 20 breeds of dogs that a government panel has described as “ferocious”.

Members of the Kennel Club of India (KCI), a private society that maintains a register of purebred dogs, say the vast majority of dog attacks involve street dogs and not purebred dogs maintained inside homes.

The orgnisation is seeking legal guidance to challenge the ban, recommended by a panel set up by the Union animal husbandry department, KCI members said on Friday.

The panel, which the government said had experts and members from stakeholder organisations, has classified American Bulldogs, Mastiffs, Pitbull Terriers, Rottweilers, several Shepherd Dogs and Wolf Dogs, among others, as “ferocious” and “dangerous for human life”.

In a note sent to all the states earlier this week, the animal husbandry department said that local bodies should issue guidelines to implement the ban on these breeds. Any dogs from these breeds already kept as pets should be sterilised to prevent further breeding, it added.

The note comes against a backdrop of public concern over dog attacks on children and adults in India, often amplified by images and narratives of the attacks shared on social media platforms.

Delhi High Court had, while hearing a petition seeking a ban on some breeds of dogs, asked the Centre last December to consult stakeholders and “decide” on the petitioners’ representation.

The Union health ministry’s disease surveillance and health information portals have documented an increase in the annual counts of dog bites over the past two years — from 2.18 million in 2022 to 2.75 million during 2023, according to data presented to Parliament last December.

Some attacks have led to deaths. A seven-month-old infant died after being attacked by street dogs roaming within a gated, multi-building apartment complex in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, in October 2022.

A researcher in Bangalore documented nearly 30 child deaths from dog attacks in 2022.

But KCI members have decried the animal husbandry department’s note, saying it appears to have been hastily crafted with neither adequate thought nor consultations with dog experts.

“This is an absolutely wrong move — we’ve had these breeds in India for decades. They live in homes as part of families,” KCI secretary C.V. Sudarsan told The Telegraph. “Concerns about dog attacks should concentrate on street dogs.”

Dog enthusiasts associated with the KCI say that several of the breeds listed by the panel are not ferocious.

“Whoever drew up the list did not do due diligence,” said Shyam Mehta, an international canine judge for all breeds who is associated as a judge with the Kennel Club. “Some of the breeds on the list are not really ferocious or attack dogs.”

The list also appears to ban all Mastiffs which, Mehta and another Kennel Club member said, is unfair because some Mastiffs do not pose any threat to humans. Another breed that does not belong on the list is the Cane Corso, Mehta said.