Dangerous dogs amnesty gets underway in Antrim

The Co Antrim town of Ballymena is beginning an amnesty today allowing the owners of dangerous dogs to hand over the animals without prosecution.

Under new legislation on dangerous dogs, it has become illegal to own breeds such as pit-bull terriers in the North.

Owners in Ballymena have been given the month of January to hand in illegal breeds without fear of prosecution.

The move was prompted by an incident in which a local family were attacked by a pit-bull-type dog during a walk in a forest last year.

It also follows the death of five-year-old Ellie Lawrenson during a dog attack in the Merseyside area of England early yesterday morning.