The number of dogs euthanised by local authority shelters in Ireland has quadrupled between 2021 and 2023, with the XL Bully becoming the fasted-increasing euthanised breed.
A recent study co-authored by UCD asked all local authorities in Ireland and the UK for information on dogs entering shelters.
In Ireland, 22 out of 31 local authorities responded to the freedom of information request with a useable data set for the purposes of the study.
Of those 22 local authorities, the number of dogs entering a shelter rose from 2,739 in 2021 to 4,871 in 2023. Over the same time period, the number of dogs euthanised in shelters rose from 91 in 2021, 190 in 2022 and 402 in 2023.
This makes Ireland’s euthanasia rate in dog shelters (5.6%) over a three-year average higher than those in the UK.
Between 2021 and 2023, 46 dogs in the 22 local authorities in Ireland were seized for human safety reasons. This is significantly higher than the UK (21) which has a larger population.
RTÉ’s This Week recently reported that dog wardens were seeing a “dramatic rise” in dog attacks.
In figures obtained by This Week, gardaà recorded 224 incidents of endangerment by animal last year.
The number of emergency inpatient discharges from Irish hospitals due to dog bites increased by 42% between 2024 and 2023.
The HSE noted that in 2023, there were 343 emergency inpatient discharges from acute hospitals due to dog bites.
In 2024, the number had risen to 488.
The HSE records inpatient and day care discharges, meaning the number of people attending hospital with a dog bite is likely higher, because if the patient is not admitted to hospital, the case is not recorded.
Ireland also had a higher rehoming rate compared with the UK, according to the study. Just over two-thirds of dogs (68%) in shelters were rehomed in Ireland between 2021 and 2023. It also kept dogs in its shelters on average for longer than UK jurisdictions.
Terriers (non-Jack Russell) and collie breeds were the most common dogs entering Irish shelters, however just eight local authorities submitted breed-specific intake data for the study.
The XL Bully type dog, which is not classified as a breed, saw a large increase in its presence in shelters across the UK and Ireland.
One XL Bully dog was euthanised in 2021. In 2023, 150 XLs were put down. This makes XL Bullies the fasting-increasing euthanised breed.
The UK made changes to the law in relation to XL Bullies in 2023.
In February 2025, it became illegal to own an XL Bully in Ireland without a certificate of exemption which mandates the dog be neutered.