The mother of a boy who was killed by a dog has said she is haunted by the last image she has of him. On November 8, 2021, 10-year-old Jack Lis from Penyrheol in Caerphilly died after sustaining "catastrophic and unsurvivable" injuries after a dog attack.
The dog, named Beast, was an American XL Bully which is a type of breed that has not been banned in the UK. The dog was shot dead by firearm officers following the attack. In June 2022 Brandon Hayden and Amy Salter were jailed for owning or being in charge of the dangerous and out of control dog.
In an interview with BBC Panorama Jack's mother Emma Whitfield said that the dog attacked Jack's face and neck. She said: "They kept saying that they were working on him, they’re working on him. And then the paramedic walked away and came back with a blanket and I knew. I can’t say out loud what else I saw because I don’t want other people to have to picture it either."
She then added: “Every time I shut my eyes I try to tell myself: 'That’s not the last image that I’ve got of him'. I try and tell myself it was when he shut the door with his skateboard in his hands."
Her interview comes as part of a BBC investigation which has uncovered how organised crime is moving into the world of extreme dog breeding. On BBC's Breakfast show on Monday inspector Ian Muttitt from the RSPCA's special operations unit said there had been a change in what he had seen in extreme dog breeding.
Speaking on the show he said: "The RSPCA has seen a huge increase in calls and complaints regarding the welfare issues associated with extreme dog breeding, especially in relation to the American bully – the sort of huge increase in those dogs we are seeing here in the UK and the ear cropping, the cutting off their ears, the cosmetic design of that dog."
He added: “Obviously the RSPCA’s primary concern is the welfare of the dogs but any breeding that focuses on cosmetics and how the dog looks, rather than for instance its temperament or health and welfare, is a real concern to us. Where we are seeing dogs that have their ears cut off unnecessarily, totally illegal in this country, those dogs are unable to interact properly with people. With dogs they can’t demonstrate normal behaviour and that procedure is totally unnecessary.”
When asked about how excessive skin including around the face, as well as the flat and shortened nose, could affect the temperament and behaviour of a dog Insp Muttitt replied: “Breeding a dog like that can affect it for the rest of its life. Those dogs are prone to skin conditions excessively, respiratory issues, mobility issues due to the way they are over-bred and oversized. That excessive fold of skin is purely done for cosmetic reasons and these dogs are being bred appealing for a cosmetic sale.”
He added: “Obviously our unit and our inspectors are working hard across the country to address these issues. The ear cropping and the American Bully has really been an explosion of these dogs across the country and it is really staggering to think that ear cropping is something we are having to deal with. But we are seeing it on a large scale. It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act and we would urge people – it’s a supply and demand industry. Ultimately the only reason these dogs are being bred is because people are paying large sums of money and we are talking about between £2,000 and £10,000 for some of them.
"And we are talking about their ears being cut off as well for having to meet a totally cosmetic purpose. This needs to be stopped full stop. There are laws in place in relation to ear cropping and we will, wherever we can, investigate and look to prosecute those that do this. However what would help massively is people not buying these dogs or if they choose to buy an American Bully to buy one that has not been cropped and not to arrange it to be cropped because they are committing an offence and the dogs are suffering horrifically to go through that process at a young age."
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