A desperately ill XL Bully could be seized from its owner and destroyed because he is too ill to be neutered.

Dog owner Stephanie Vine is terrified she could be prosecuted and face losing her beloved companion Colin who was recently diagnosed with epilepsy.

New restrictions on the ownership of the XL Bully dog came into force on December 31 following several reports of attacks involving the breed despite pleas from owners.

It means from the start of next month it will be illegal to own one of the dogs unless it has been exempted and abides by certain conditions. This includes having your dog neutered by the deadline of June 31.

But Mrs Vine, who lives near Darland, Chatham, has asked for this time to be extended for her two-year-old dog while he adapts to his new medication and his condition stablises.

She says she is more than happy to abide by the rules and actually feels the operation may help his condition in the long run but says her sick dog is simply not ready for it yet.

“He is not stable enough on his medication to be able to be neutered,” she told KentOnline.

Mrs Vine has contacted the government about her own individual circumstances, providing a medical breakdown from Colin’s specialist neurologists confirming he is not stable enough to be neutered at the moment.

But the public servant received a generic response back, seen by KentOnline, simply stating “To comply with the conditions of exemption under the new legislation, a dog has to be neutered”.

It then went on to explain the conditions for applying for a certificate of exemption which can be found here.

The 38-year-old said she felt the response was entirely unsympathetic.

“It’s not fair given our dog’s current circumstances,” she said. “Both my husband and I are public servants, so we are no strangers to practices and policies alike.

“We feel there has been a lack of consideration when it comes to the welfare of dogs who have underlining health conditions that may affect their ability to comply to parts of the ban.

“We are complying with all the other guidelines about walking on a lead and being muzzled but Colin is just not in a position to be castrated as he is still not completely stable on his medication at the moment and would not survive the anaesthetic required to put him under for the castration procedure as his specialist vets are continually changing his dosages, as well as adding in new medications.”

Mrs Vine said she now feels she is in a desperate situation.

She added: “Of course we want to comply with the rules of the ban, as we do not wish for our Colin to be seized and destroyed, the thought of it terrifies us as he is a huge part of our family.

“But I don’t want to send him for an operation which he might not wake up from.”

A letter from the neurologist, forwarded to the government by Mrs Vine, confirms her fears and requested a postponement of the procedure for Colin.

The two-year-old XL Bully lives with his sisters Bella, a Jack Russell and Sydney, a mastiff/American Bulldog cross.

Collin was training to be a therapy dog at a care home where Mrs Vine’s aunty had been a resident and had already completed his bronze and silver good citizenship certificates when he had his first seizure on September 12 last year.

“It was literally just as Rishi Sunak was announcing the plans to introduce the ban,” she said. “I’d never seen it before and thought he was choking.

“I’ve done first aid as I used to be a teacher so rushed to try and dislodge whatever was in his mouth. I tried to grab the object but it was just his tongue.”

The seizures became more regular during the month and Colin was referred to expert neurologists in Buckinghamshire where he underwent MRI and CT scans and was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy.

“It cost a lot of money,” the dog owner added. “But we would do anything we needed to for him.”

Since September, Colin had been having three grand mal seizures every 10 days lasting anywhere between 30 seconds and two and a half minutes.

He is now on medication which Mrs Vine is hoping will help stablise his condition as if the seizures do not stop she said he could end up with brain damage.

Before his illness Colin also donated blood and Mrs Vine said he was always willing to offer his paw to the vet.

“We’d go in and he’d say hello to everyone and be so happy to be there,” she said. “The vet would show him the shaver and he would give her his paw ready.”

A plea to extend the neutering deadline for younger dogs affected by the forthcoming XL bully ban is set to be considered by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) following a request by MPs.

It’s also supported by the British Veterinary Association which has warned of its concerns about the health implications for affected dogs, together with the sector’s capacity to deal with the ban.

However, if extended, the deadline for that procedure to be carried out would be from December 2024 to June 2025 for dogs that are aged seven months or younger when the ban is implemented.

A spokeswoman for Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said to comply with the conditions of exemption under the new legislation, a dog has to be neutered and there are no medical exemptions.

She added: “We would recommend the dog’s owner contact their local vet to discuss ways in which they manage any medical issues and meet the conditions of the Certificate of Exemption.”