B.S.L. IN FRANCE
compiled by J Wolf Bergerhausen

“... Only 2% of the dogs named are listed in the dangerous dog list ...”

The French BSL (Breed Specific Legislation) came into force on 6 January 1999 by splitting a dangerous dog list into two categories:

1 Pit and Boerbulls - the attack dogs;
2 American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Terriers, Rottweiler and Tosa - the guard and defence dogs.

The Vice President of the Veterinary Federation was in charge of informing the public with brochures, etc, about this new law. Ignoring what a “Staffordshire Terrier” was (old name of the American Staffordshire Terrier) she just changed it to read “Staffordshire Bull Terrier” - and all the printed information papers therefore mentioned the SBT as a dangerous dog. The media overlooked this error and everybody (even the vets since the breed was completely unknown) thought that the SBT was really listed.

Thanks to David Levy and a few people in France, the error has been rectified from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Home Office in confirming to us, by letter, that the SBT is not concerned.

Now we can say that this law is more or less defeated. A lot of lawyers, judges, policemen, and all vets, agree that this law was not a solution to a society problem.

The dog pounds are filled with dogs which are normally not concerned by the dangerous dog law. I do not mention any published figures or statistics because they would be wrong or manipulated. However, the Ministry told me in 2003 that there are no official statistics done by anybody concerning dog accidents by breed.

Now in January 2004 they tell us in the official government information magazine, Journal Officiel, that the dog accidents concerning listed dangerous dogs have been drastically reduced since the BSL has been introduced.

The controlling authorities are completely lost and have big difficulties recognizing the dogs concerned by the law. It can easily happen that a French Bull-Dogue, Carlin, Boxer, etc, can be confiscated because of a badly informed and ignorant officer. I also have the impression that the enforcement people are not even interested in learning more about the concerned breeds. In showing and proving by official papers that our breed is not affected by the law, the reaction is quite aggressive. A well-known vet said, “It’s a crime to have an unsympathetic face (délit sale gueule).” This I can confirm - being always dressed in sport or classic fashion, no piercing in my ears or nose, no tattoos, etc, I have never been controlled!

A lot of Pitbull owners switched over to a Cane Corso, Dogue Argentin, etc, so as not to be involved in this dangerous dog list, and quite a few Amstaff breeders have now changed to breeding Staffordshire Bull Terriers.

The number of puppies registered is still going up:

For about two years now the French newspapers and other media have not mentioned any dangerous dog scandals and the public gets more friendly and more used to our dogs.

It seems (information from the French Kennel Club) that the new law of public security will bring us some surprises concerning the dangerous dog list. I hope it will be a good surprise, that the SBT is definitely taken off of the list like the Ministry promised us. However, with all these stupid things that have been done in the past, we have some doubts.

Last minute information:
Laurent Kern (vet and animal behaviourist) is reporting in a magazine, Le Journal des Professionnels de l’Enfance, No 26 January/February 2004, that nearly all dog accidents (15 to 20%) happen in the home; 35 to 40% in the garden (own, neighbour or friends); and, 15 to 20% in public parks, the street etc. Most of the time the child was alone with the dog (20 to 25%), and in more than 50% of the cases the child was not supervised by an adult. In one of two cases the child did not know the dog before.

The responsible and predominant breeds are German Shepherd or shepherd-type dogs (40 to 50%), followed by Cockers, Poodles, Labradors, Huskies and small Terriers. Only 2% of the dogs named are listed in the dangerous dog list.