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    Restricted & banned dog breeds in Ireland

    Table of Contents

    Republic of Ireland

    According to the Control of Dogs Regulations, 1998 restrictions exist for the following dog breeds: (a) American Pit Bull Terrier (b) Bull Mastiff (c) Doberman Pinscher (d) English Bull Terrier (e) German Shepherd (Alsatian) (f) Japanese Akita (g) Japanese Tosa (h) Rhodesian Ridgeback (i) Rottweiler (j) Staffordshire Bull Terrier, and to every dog of the type commonly known as a Ban Dog (or Bandog), and to every other strain or cross of every breed or type of dog described in this article. A person shall not permit a dog to which this article applies to be in a public place unless such dog is:
    • Securely muzzled; and
    • being led by a sufficiently strong chain or leash, not exceeding two metres in length, by a person over the age of sixteen years who can control the said dog.
    • The owner or other person in charge of a dog shall ensure that such dog shall at all times wear a collar bearing the name and address of the owner inscribed thereon, or on a plate, badge or disc attached thereto.
    Any breaches of these regulations, will constitute an offence. Certain exemptions exist. All information may be found here

    Northern Ireland

    There are more strict controls in place for certain breeds of dog in Northern Ireland. There are four banned breeds of dogs in Northern Ireland:
    • Pit Bull terrier
    • Japanese Tosa
    • Dogo Argentino
    • Fila Braziliero
    Certain exemptions exist. In some cases a court will allow you to own a banned dog. If a dog is a banned type but the court believes it would not be a danger to the public if it was kept under certain strict conditions, the court may make a ‘contingent destruction order’. This exempts the dog from the ban as long as the exemption conditions are met. The exemption conditions are:
    • the dog is neutered
    • the dog is kept leashed and muzzled when in a public place
    • when not in a public place, the dog is in sufficiently secure conditions
    • the dog is made available to council dog wardens for inspection
    • the council is notified of any change of address of the dog, or of the death or export of the dog
    • third party insurance policy is taken out for the dog
    In these circumstances you have two months to show that the exemption conditions have been met. Then you can apply for dog a licence from the council. If the exemption conditions are not met, it is likely to lead to the destruction of the dog concerned. Where a dog has been exempted from the ban on certain dog types, it is still an offence to breed from that dog, advertise it for sale or exchange, or transfer its ownership without informing the council. All further information may be found here *All information is correct as of July 2023. DogStop accepts no responsibility for information being out of date on this page, but we will endeavour to keep all information as up to date as possible. This information is not extensive. If you see anything that does not look right, please let us know at info@dogstop.ie