Dog attacks across the UK have surged to alarming new levels since the pandemic, with new data obtained by the Mirror revealing that out-of-control dogs caused injury in at least 29,400 incidents in 2025 alone. That equates to 81 attacks per day, or 3.4 every hour — a five percent increase on the already high 28,000 recorded in 2024, the year the XL Bully was banned. Before the pandemic, in 2019, just over 16,000 attacks were logged.
Rising trend since 2020
The figures, obtained through exclusive Freedom of Information requests to every police force in England and Wales, show a steady rise: 16,040 in 2020, 19,762 in 2021, 21,700 in 2022, and 27,000 in 2023. Experts say the trend reflects a broader societal breakdown. Dr Carri Westgarth, a professor of human-animal interaction at the University of Liverpool, told the Mirror: “Society is just kind of disintegrating in front of our very eyes. It feels like that some days. Perhaps this is another way this is coming out — we’ve got crazier, busier lives. Our lives just seem more stressful in general.”
Loophole breeds fuel attacks
Alarmingly, owners are exploiting a loophole in the XL Bully ban by breeding smaller “pocket,” “micro,” and “nano” bullies that do not meet the ban’s size criteria. These dogs typically reach only 22–27 cm at the withers, well below the 48 cm threshold for XL bullies. In one incident, a 42-year-old woman was mauled by a muscular off-leash dog in a church garden in Primrose Hill, Camden. She said the dog’s jaws punctured her thick winter coat and that two men struggled to wrestle it off her. “If I hadn’t been wearing such a thick coat, I would not have an arm today,” she told the Camden New Journal.
Regional hotspots
The Metropolitan Police recorded the highest number of attacks in 2025, with 2,530 incidents, including the Primrose Hill case. Greater Manchester Police came second with 1,678, followed by Lancashire (1,333), West Midlands (1,325), and Devon and Cornwall (1,265). In terms of per capita rates, Lincolnshire had 94 attacks per 100,000 people, Northamptonshire 93, Durham 88, and Cumbria 86. Among forces that provided data for both 2019 and 2025, attacks rose by an average of 80 percent.
Fatal attacks and family grief
Three people died in dog attacks in a single week in April 2026. A woman in her 70s was killed by two dogs in Wolverhampton on April 15; a 37-year-old man was arrested. Earlier, 19-year-old Jamie-Lea Biscoe was killed by what was described as a “genuine family dog,” and three-month-old Maggie May Ann Moody died after being attacked by a “pocket bully” in Redcar. Her family called her “perfect in every way.” Mike and Shirley Anderson, whose daughter Jade Lomas-Anderson was killed by a pack of dogs in 2013, said they were “appalled” but not surprised. Mike said: “Since what happened with Jade, I think it’s increased every single year. Appalling figures.” Shirley added: “It makes me really angry.”
NHS data and expert calls for reform
NHS figures show 10,905 A&E admissions for dog bites in England in the year to March 2025, down slightly from 10,924 in 2023/24 but still the second highest on record, and up from 9,027 in 2019/20. Dr Sam Gaines of the RSPCA said it was “heartbreaking” that incidents are rising and that current legislation is failing. “The UK Government urgently needs to adopt a different approach, focusing on preventing dangerous behaviours rather than the dog’s breed,” she said. Professor Westgarth highlighted multiple factors: more dogs owned since lockdown, poor advice from TikTok ‘dog trainers,’ and lack of access to proper training. She also pointed to stressed owners amid the cost-of-living crisis. James McNally, a solicitor specializing in dog attacks, noted a spike in cases involving delivery drivers bitten by unattended dogs. “People just don’t think their dog is going to cause any injury,” he said.
