A YOUNG girl has been rushed to hospital after she was attacked by an XL Bully-type dog outside a shop.
The victim suffered three puncture wounds in the attack in the Trebanog area of the Rhondda Valley, south Wales, on April 7.
The girl was rushed to hospital from the scene, but is now understood to be recovering at home after suffering non-life threatening injuries.
The dog has since been put down, with cops saying they were had not yet confirmed whether it was an XL Bully.
A spokesman for South Wales Police said: "If someone owns, or believes they own, an XL Bully dog which isn’t registered, they can no longer register directly with Defra.
"We would encourage these owners to contact South Wales Police in the first instance, as there are potential options to register the dog without seizing it."
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The UK government website states it's a criminal offence to own or possess an XL Bully dog in England and Wales unless you have a valid Certificate of Exemption.
This ban came in on 1 February 2024 and was due to a significant rise in reported attacks with multiple fatalities over the past few years.
It's also an offence to sell an XL Bully dog, abandon one, give the dog away, breed XL Bully's or take the dog out in public without a lead or a muzzle.
Those who own an XL Bully without an exemption can face a criminal record and their pet may be taken and destroyed.
Dog attack fatalities in 2024
There were 10 people killed last year in the UK in dog attacks. Five of them were killed by XL bullies.
Esther Martin, 68, was mauled by two XL bullies as she tried to protect her grandson in Jaywick, Essex in February.
Angeline Mahal, in her 50s, was killed in her own home by her two pet XL Bullies in Horncurch, East London in May.
Elle Doherty, seven months old, was attacked and killed by her family's pet Belgian Malinois in Coventry in June.
Kelly Reilly, 33, was killed by her pet Bull Mastiff while she was having a seizure in her home in Coventry in July.
Michelle Hempstead, 34, a mum-of-five was killed by her pet Bull Mastiff in Southend, Essex, in July
Nicholas Glass, 32, was killed by four dogs including two XL bullies at a relative's house in Birmingham in August.
David Daintree, 53, was killed by an XL bully in Accrington, Lancashire, in August.
Savannah Bentham, 10, was killed by her family XL Bully inside their caravan in Malton, North Yorkshire in November.
Michelle McLeod, 41, was killed by her pet American Bulldog, which police said was registered, at her home in Aberdeen in December.
Akif Mustaq was savaged to death by a banned Pitbull Terrier as he walked outside a block of flats in Stratford, London in December.