A recent news article sparked my interest in banned dog breeds across the world. While the US doesn’t have a country-wide breed ban in place, a lot of countries do. Canada, for example, is considering law but only has laws on a province-by-province basis. Below are a few examples of country-wide bans. Note the similarities.

Banned dog breeds in Australia:

• Dogo Argentino (Argentinean mastiff)
• Fila Brasileiro (Brazilian mastiff)
• Japanese Tosa.
• American Pit Bull Terrier and Pit Bull Terrier breeds.
• Perro de Presa Canario or Presa Canario.
• and any dog of a mixed breed that visibly contains any of these breeds.

Banned dog breeds in Argentina:

• Dogo Argentino (Argentinean mastiff)– These dogs were bred in this country originally for hunting and now they are no longer welcome.
• Fila Brasileiro (Brazilian mastiff)
• Japanese Tosa.
• American Pit Bull Terrier and Pit Bull Terrier breeds.
• Perro de Presa Canario or Presa Canario.
• and any dog of a mixed breed that visibly contains any of these breeds.

According to www.gov.uk, the banned dog breeds in UK are the following:

• Pit Bull Terrier
• Japanese Tosa
• Dogo Argentino
• Fila Braziliero

And police have the right to take your dog if they see it in a public place. They may need a warrant if it is in a private place, but if they have a warrant for something else and they see your dog is illegal, they may seize it.

In Denmark, it is illegal to own, breed, or import the following:

• Pit Bull Terrier
• Tosa Inu (Japanese Fighting Dog)
• American Staffordshire Terrier
• Fila Brasileiro
• Dogo Argentino
• American Bulldog
• Boerboel (South African Mastiff)
• Turkish Kangal
• Central Asian Ovtcharka
• Caucasian Ovtcharka
• South Russian Ovtcharka
• Tornjak
• Sarplaninac

For the finale, China recently passed very aggressive laws on dog breeds. Any dog over 35 centimeters (14 inches) at maturity is not allowed as it is considered “big and vicious.” Here is a sample list of big and vicious dogs:

• Mastiff
• German pinscher
• St. Bernard
• Great Dane
• Great Pyrenees
• Bernese mountain
• Rottweiler
• Weimaraner
• Setters
• Afghan hound
• Foxhound
• Bloodhound
• Irish wolfhound
• Saluki
• Greyhound
• Borzoi
• Basenji
• Australian shepherd
• Belgian shepherd
• Bouvier des Flandres
• Bearded collie
• Scottish shepherd
• German shepherd
• Old English sheepdog
• British bulldog
• Chow chow
• Dalmatian
• Keeshond
• Japanese akita
• Newfoundland
• Sled dog
• Bedlington terrier
• Bull terrier
• Kerry blue terrier

Lesson learned? The smaller the dog in China, the better off you’ll be, because everyone knows Chihuahuas aren’t aggressive at all…