In the wake of some horrific dog attacks in our region, figures show St Helens saw more than 70 dangerous dog incidents reported last year.
The ECHO submitted a Freedom of Information request to Merseyside Police, with the force confirming that for the financial year 2021-22, 77 dangerous dog offences were reported in the borough. This is a significant increase from 53 in the previous year.
There were 60 offences recorded for the year 2018-19, with the figure for 2019-20 sitting at 44. The impact of these incidents can be devastating, as recent deaths in the county have illustrated - such as Bella-Rae Birch, who was killed by her family pet, an American Bulldog XL, last year.
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Emergency services were called to 17-month-old's home on Bidston Avenue at 3.49pm on March 21 2022, after a report a child had been "seriously injured." Despite medical treatment, Bella-Rae Birch was declared dead at Alder Hey Children's Hospital at 4.45pm the same day. A post-mortem examination subsequently established the cause of death as "head trauma."
The breed of dog was later confirmed to have been an American Bulldog XL or "XL Bully", a legal breed not subject to any prohibitions under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
A National Police Chiefs’ Council spokesperson said: “The National Police Chiefs’ Council Dangerous Dogs Working Group have been working across the country to tackle the issue of dog attacks. As a result of this focus, we have seen an increase in the number of people reporting incidents to police. There are now officers in all regions of the country focussing on dangerous dogs and dog attacks, working with officers on the ground to ensure that investigations are launched when it is appropriate and proportionate to do so.
“We are aware that incidents can often be very alarming to members of the public who witness them, but I want to reassure people that we are taking the matter seriously and we are cracking down on those who own or breed dangerous dogs. We continue to ask members of the public who know of dangerous dog ownership to contact police on 101 or in an emergency always call 999.”
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