'Two family members have been executed': XL Bully owner left reeling after South Yorkshire Police shooting

Callum Differ received a call from his girlfriend while at work on Monday (March 31) to say that their two dogs - Mila, an XL Bully and Benji, a rescue dog and unknown breed - had escaped through a hole neither knew about in the garden.

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He rushed to Facebook to put out an appeal to help track the missing dogs down, before heading to his car to drive back home and help with the search.

But before he got far, another call came through - the dogs had been shot dead by police after being spotted in woodland near Cramfit Road, between North Anston and Dinnington.

The loss has been devastating, with Callum decrying the actions that took away two of his ‘family members’.

“I’d put a post on Facebook and started driving back when my partner phoned - there was a man talking, she was distraught in the background, he said the dogs had been shot,” recalled Callum.

“I understand it was my fault they got out - I didn’t mean for them to get out so I’m in the wrong there.

“But they’re in the wrong too (the police).

“It’s not just two dogs that have been shot, it’s two family members that have been executed.

“One of them helped me get through my mental health issues - I’d be dead without them.”

He said the dogs had “hearts of gold”.

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South Yorkshire Police’s response to loose dogs has been called into question before, with an XL Bully named Ghost shot by officers in Hillsborough in December, which led to protests.

In July last year, Ashley Taylor, from, Woodhouse, claimed he couldn’t ‘understand why they did it’ when he returned home from police custody after being arrested on suspicion of burglary to find his dogs dead.

Officers had searched his home while he was in custody and “humanely” destroyed his two dogs - a Staffordshire Bull Terrier named Lotus and an American Bulldog named Prince.

SYP said in a statement at the time that the two dogs were believed to have beenan “unregistered XL Bully and a pit bull type” and were “aggressive”.

South Yorkshire Police argue that the strong response is necessary, with the force receiving an ‘unprecedented’ amount reports of dangerous dogs.

Commenting on the latest incident, Chief Inspector Emma Cheney - who leads the work on dangerous dogs in South Yorkshire - said: “We understand this is an extremely distressing incident for the dogs’ owners.

“Shooting a dog is never a decision taken lightly by our armed officers, many of whom are dog owners themselves, but the safety of our communities and officers will always be paramount.

“Upon officers’ arrival, the dogs were still loose and were unable to be contained.

“Due to the ongoing risk posed by the dogs to the public, including dog walkers nearby with children, other animals, and our officers, it was deemed necessary to shoot the dogs.

“We are continuing to see unprecedented demand on our force from dangerous dogs, with on average four people reporting being injured or in fear of injury from a dog every day.

“We continue to urge owners to take action, help keep you, your family, and communities safe.”

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