Urgent hunt for red-haired 'XL Bully' owner who 'took off' after her hound attacked woman in Northampton

Police are hunting for the owner of an XL Bully-type dog after it attacked a woman in Northampton.

The victim was left with injuries to her arm when the hound latched onto her while she was out for a walk on Friday morning.

The dog's owner, who has been described by police as red-haired and of a slim build, apologised to the woman but took off without giving her details.

The mauling was said to have unfolded on Constable Road, Corby after the XL Bully-type dog became startled by the victim.

Northamptonshire Police said the woman tried to move out of the way of the hound, which was on a lead at the time of the attack, but was left with an arm injury after the dog lunged at her.

The force added the dog owner is believed to be 35-40 years old and of a slim build.

She was also seen wearing a long green jacket with its hood up at the time of the attack.

Officers said in a statement: 'Police officers are appealing for the owner of a dog to come forward after a woman sustained an arm injury in Constable Road, Corby.

'The incident occurred between 7am and 7.10am on Friday, November 15, when the woman and the dog startled each other. As she moved out of the way, the dog which was on its lead, jumped up and bit her on the arm.

'The owner of the dog apologised to the woman but left without leaving details and officers would like to identify the dog, which is described as possibly a red coloured American Bulldog or XL Bully.

'They would also like to speak to the owner, who was a white woman, aged 35 to 40 years and of a slim build with dark red hair. She was wearing a long green jacket with the hood up.

'Witnesses or anyone with information about the dog are asked to call Northamptonshire Police on 101 or alternatively contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

'Please quote incident number 24000681613 when providing any information to make sure it gets to the right person as quickly as possible.'

An XL Bully is a banned breed, after rules officially came into place in England and Wales on February 1 following legislation from then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak 's Tory government.

Following a long history of vicious attacks on people and other dogs across the UK, the ban made it illegal to own, sell, abandon, give away or breed an XL Bully without an exemption approval granted by the government.

The ban also made it illegal for any exempt XL Bullies to be in public without both a lead and muzzle.

Included in this new legislation was a set definition for what exactly constitutes as an XL Bully dog.

This criteria includes the size of the dogs head, its build and its height (at least 20 inches for males and 19 for females).

Dogs which met the XL Bully criteria but whose owners were unable to obtain government exemptions from the ban were ordered to be put to sleep by vets, with owners to receive compensation from authorities.

However, many experts have questioned the effectiveness of the ban, with reports of breeders and owners finding workarounds to avoid having their dogs seized.

Doug Smith, member of Bully Watch, told the MailOnline earlier this year that more XL Bully remain likely despite the new legislation.

'The ban hasn't had an impact on the ownership of these dogs and they are being rehomed to unsuitable homes illegally', Mr Smith said.

'People are rehoming these dogs to other irresponsible owners. It is a case of idiots giving their dogs to other idiots. These people think they are responsible owners when they aren't.'

Moreover, there have been further reports of pet owners attempting to dodge the ban by breeding 'micro' or 'pocket' versions of XL Bullies.

As for the confirmed effectiveness of the XL Bully ban, the true results are yet to be seen with the Office for National Statistics still awaiting official figures on UK dog deaths for 2024.

Part of the Dangerous Dogs Act, if an owner is found to be in breach of the XL Bully ban, they can be sentenced to up to 14 years in prison, be disqualified from owning other dogs in future and also allows for authorities to euthanize dogs deemed to be dangerous.

As for the confirmed effectiveness of the XL Bully ban, the true results are yet to be seen with the Office for National Statistics still awaiting official figures on UK dog deaths for 2024.