Following Pitbull Attack on 6-Year-Old Child, PETA India Renews Appeal to Ban Foreign Dog Breeds Used for Illegal Fighting in the Capital

In response to yet another attack by a foreign dog breed bred for aggression that left a 6-year-old boy critically injured including the loss of his right ear, in Prem Nagar, Delhi, PETA India has written to Chief Secretary of Delhi Shri Rajeev Verma, IAS and to the   Shri Robin Baleja, IDES, renewing its call urging Delhi to implement a policy prohibiting the breeding, selling, and keeping of foreign dog breeds such as pit bull terriers, Rottweilers, Pakistani bully kuttas, Dogo Argentinos (Argentine mastiffs), Presa Canarios, Fila Brasileiros (Brazilian mastiffs), bull terriers, Cane Corsos (Italian mastiffs), and XL bullies who have been deliberately bred for fighting and aggression. PETA India warns that such dogs are often sold to unsuspecting buyers who are themselves attacked or otherwise cannot control the animals.

PETA India also urges the government to shut down all illegal pet shops and breeders operating in the capital without registering with the Delhi State Animal Welfare Board—as required under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Pet Shop) Rules, 2018, and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing) Rules, 2017—and to focus on encouraging the adoption of community dogs from shelters and streets.

 These are not isolated incidents; over the year, Delhi has witnessed numerous attacks. In October 2024, a pet Pit Bull bit off most of a 22-year-old man’s ear, requiring an 11-hour microsurgery to reattach it. In September 2024, a pit bull bit the face of a calf in Burari. In March 2024, a seven-year-old girl in Jagatpuri, Shahdara was attacked while playing outside her house: she was bitten and dragged by a pet pit bull before neighbours rescued her. In January 2024, an 18-month-old child in Burari was mauled by a pit bull — the toddler suffered fractures in the leg and required 18 stitches. In November 2023, in Swaroop Nagar, a woman was bitten by a neighbour’s pit bull when the dog was incited by the owners to attack her.

The Union Territory of Chandigarh has recently banned the keeping and sale of Rottweilers and certain pit bull-like dog breeds bred for aggression and fighting. The State of Goa is finalising similar prohibitions. The Jharkhand government has recently banned the keeping and sale of pit bulls, Rottweilers, and certain other foreign breeds bred for attack. Previously, several municipal corporations implemented rules regarding the keeping of pit bulls and Rottweilers within city limits.

Because such dogs are commonly bred to be used in illegal fighting or kept on heavy chains as attack dogs, they endure a lifetime of suffering which causes them to become fearful and defensive. These horrendous fights can last up to two hours. Common injuries include severe bruising, deep puncture wounds, and broken bones. The bloody ordeal often leaves the dogs too exhausted to go on or even defend themselves. Some die in the ring, while others succumb soon afterwards to exhaustion and injuries. Their deaths can be caused by blood loss, shock, dehydration, exhaustion, or infection hours or even days after the fight. Many dogs used for fights endure painful physical mutilations such as ear-cropping – an illegal process that involves removing part of a dog’s ears to prevent another dog from grabbing them during a fight.

In India, inciting dogs to fight is illegal under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. Yet organised dogfights are prevalent in parts of India, including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, and Rajasthan.

India has an estimated 52.5 million dogs living on the streets, 8 million already languishing in overcrowded shelters awaiting good homes. PETA India advises that the only humane and practical ways to address these issues, grounded in science and reality, are the nationwide implementation of the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023.