UK bans XL bully dogs, police kennelling and vet bills triple
Police finance teams face tripled kennelling and veterinary bills
Change
UK banned XL bully dogs in 2024, and data from 22 police forces show kennelling and veterinary spending rose from an average of £137,400 per force in 2022-23 to £423,136 in 2024-25.
Why it matters
Police forces must now absorb recurring costs for prolonged kennelling and emergency veterinary care for seized XL bully dogs, creating a new, sustained operational budget pressure. Budget holders face harder prioritisation decisions because funds diverted to these costs reduce resources available for other policing activities.
Implications
- — Police force finance teams in England and Wales — must immediately reallocate budget lines or identify emergency funding — otherwise they will need to cut frontline policing or other services this fiscal year to cover tripled kennelling and veterinary bills.
- — Police procurement teams responsible for kennelling contracts — must secure additional kennel and emergency veterinary capacity now — failure to contract sufficient capacity risks leaving seized XL bully dogs without required accommodation and breaching animal welfare or custody procedures.
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