Kennel staff told not to exercise illegal breed Stella
 
A 'pit bull type' dog called Stella has been held in kennels by Devon police for two years without exercise, the BBC has revealed.

Former kennel assistant Lauren Khanlarian told a BBC Inside Out programme that Stella had been kept in a 3ft x 9ft kennel ever since she was seized under the Dangerous Dogs Act (DDA) in 2014. During that time she only left the kennel twice for behavioural assessments.

Staff at the private kennel in Devon were told by police not to exercise dogs brought in under the DDA, regardless of temperament, Ms Khanlarian continued.

"We were under no circumstances allowed to touch any of those dogs, which was hard. Animal welfare comes before anything and that was my job. I don't believe I would be doing it properly if I would sit back and think that's okay. It wasn't okay - it's not okay."

Stella was seized after Devon and Cornwall police visited her owner, Antony Hastie, on an unrelated matter in 2014. The force judged her too dangerous to be exercised as she had 'threatened and shown aggressive behaviour' towards two community support officers, shown aggression prior to being seized and attempted to bite an independent expert during an assessment.

Two years later, on 8 February this year, Torquay Magistrates' Court ordered Stella to be destroyed. Her owner has 28 days to appeal the decision.

Sergeant Allan Knight, from the force's dog handling unit, told BBC reporters they cannot return seized dogs to their owners until the court process is finished. "It's very frustrating," he added. "It's not great from an animal welfare perspective.

"But what we do, the police and the kennels, we are in contact with animal welfare groups like the RSPCA, to ensure that Stella is getting looked after as best as possible in the circumstances. Is it ideal? Absolutely not, it's not ideal. Bur sometimes all we can do is manage a very poor situation."

A video clip was played in court showing Stella's behaviour after two years in kennels. Renowned animal behaviour expert, Kendal Shepherd, said the dog's confinement could be the reason for her perceived aggression in the video.  

"That's a very distressed dog. It's a dog that's resorting to obsessive compulsive behaviour, which is a way that dogs use - and in fact we see it in zoo animals as well - of stress relief.

"Any dog that is being threatened or restrained, or behind a barrier, or confined, is going to feel more threatened than if it is free. But unfortunately in many cases the way of dealing with this perceived aggression is to actually restrain the dog more, which simply makes the dog worse."

RSPCA guidance recommends kennelled dogs receive at least 30 minutes of exercise per day, unless they are deemed too dangerous.

Responding to the BBC programme in a statement, Devon and Cornwall Police said: 'At times we must balance the needs of the welfare of the animal and the safety of kennel staff. The long established, licensed and accredited kennel in question was in agreement with our assessment. The dog has had continual kennel enrichment with staff and remained in fine and fit condition throughout.

'The Court have heard and accepted evidence from the police and independently appointed animal behaviourists that Stella has unpredictable and dangerous behaviour patterns.'

The force also said they have seized around 100 dogs in the past two years, of which Stella is the only one ruled too dangerous to exercise. The length of this particular case was also said to be 'extremely rare'.

A freedom of information request made by the BBC revealed 7,000 seized dogs have been kennelled in the UK - at a cost of £5 million. The longest kennel stay for a dog is 985 days.

Makers of the Inside Out programme hope their findings may result in parliamentary action. Conservative MP Neil Parish said an inquiry on the issue will be carried out by the Efra Committee.

The full Inside Out South West programme is available to watch on BBC iPlayer: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0721g53/inside-out-south-west-29022016