The American bully XL is, despite its name and reputation, said to be good with children and a friendly dog. However, it can turn, with terrible consequences.
A father of two young children was killed by a dog, believed to be an XL bully, in Leigh, Greater Manchester, last week. Jonathan Hogg, 37, had apparently been playing with the dog when it suddenly went for his throat. Hogg didn’t stand a chance against such a powerful creature. Since 2021, XL bullies – and one XL cross – have killed seven people in the UK, three of them children: Bella Rae Birch, 17 months, Alice Stones, four, and ten-year-old Jack Lis.
The XL bully is a relatively new, larger version of the American bulldog, which is a modern re-creation of the old bull- and bear-baiting bulldogs of centuries ago, a mix of pit bull, mastiff and other bull dogs. The American and English staffies, along with the banned American pit-bull terrier, all stem from that original bulldog.
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