A dog owner in Bucks said they are 'afraid of the police' after the shooting of two bulldogs in London last weekend.

A Bucks resident, who wanted to remain anonymous, has spoken out against the shooting of two bulldogs by Metropolitan police officers in East London last Sunday, May 7. 

Officers responded to reports of a woman being attacked by a dog on Commercial Road, Poplar, just after 5pm last Sunday.

Footage uploaded to social media shortly afterwards showed a man holding two bulldogs on a leash while police officers attempted to approach him, asking him to surrender the animals. 

The two dogs were then shot by the advancing officers and the man was tasered. 

 

A statement released by the Met Police Force said: "The aggressive behaviour of the dogs posed a significant threat to officers.

"A man was arrested in connection with the incident for having a dog dangerously out of control and for assault offences."

A dog owner from Buckinghamshire told the Free Press that they were "mortified and sickened" to see the killing of "innocent and beautiful animals who displayed no aggression and were kept under control".

"Those dogs did not deserve to die and I strongly believe that if they were another breed, such as a Labrador, they would not have been murdered.

"Breed discrimination needs to be stopped. It saddens me that people still assume breeds are the problem when in fact it's the owner."

They added: "I don't feel safe walking my bulldogs anywhere now and I shouldn't have to feel like that - especially when it's the police I'm afraid of."

Another local resident, Nathan Nelson, reiterated this view, telling the Free Press that he was "heartbroken" to hear about the shooting.

"The policing is outrageous. You could clearly see in the videos that those dogs were harmless.

"I don't want those officers working in the industry anymore. The incompetence is unreal."

A review by Metropolitan Police's Professional Standards Unit was satisfied that there were "no concerns around officer conduct" in relation to the incident.