DEVON and Cornwall Police destroyed close to 100 dogs last year, a Freedom of Information (FOI) request has shown.

In 2024, police destroyed 89 dogs, the FOI shows.

Of the 89 dogs, 42 were XL Bullies.

This comes as the force seized 180 dogs, 110 of which were XL Bullies, last year.

It became illegal to breed, exchange or advertise an XL Bully dog as of December 31, 2023.

A month later, it became a criminal offence to own the breed without an exemption certificate.

Elsewhere, there were 1315 crimes reported between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2024 where a dog was ‘dangerously out of control’ and caused an injury, an increase on the year prior, another FOI showed.

In 2023, Devon and Cornwall Police reported 1050 crimes where a dog was ‘dangerously out of control’ and caused an injury.