Police have launched a nationwide operation to hunt down more than 100 illegal pitbull-type dogs sold by a Westcountry couple.
Steven and Tracey Tewskesbury, 52 and 48 respectively, pleaded guilty to charges of owning and possessing the potentially-dangerous dogs, at North Devon Magistrates' Court.
The pair, of Jordan Close in Newport, Barnstaple, admitted to owning Motor, Troy and KC, all classified as illegal pitbull-type dogs.
They also admitted having sold a dog last year which records showed had been fathered by dogs they owned.
The court hearing last Friday heard a website run by Steven Tewkesbury contained information about notorious dog fights and claimed one of his dogs was descended from an infamous fighting dog called Psycho.
Yesterday, Devon and Cornwall Police revealed they knew of about 37 of the dogs bred and sold by the Tewskesburys were still in the two counties. Nationally there are thought to be more than 100.
The force has now launched Operation Doorstop 2, to find and identify dogs sold by the couple. The dogs are believed to have been sold nationally as "Irish Staffords".
Devon and Cornwall officers have contacted other police forces where the dogs are thought to be and are in the process of contacting owners directly in Devon and Cornwall.
Detective Inspector Praveen Naidoo said: "The operation is intelligence-led. The aim is to identify pitbull-type dogs that are in the community having been sold by Mr and Mrs Tewkesbury as 'Irish Staffords' and ensure that the risk any dog may present is mitigated by use of Court orders.
"So far, we have identified approximately 37 people in Devon and Cornwall who may have purchased dogs from this couple and in excess of a hundred nationally.
"Whilst it is a criminal offence to own a pitbull-type dog, unless there are aggravating circumstances around the ownership of the dog it will not be our intention to prosecute owners. Our priority is to ensure that any risk the dog may present to the community and the family in which it is resident is mitigated.
"A number of pitbull-type dogs have already been seized as a result of this operation and we are working closely with the courts to ensure orders are obtained in relation to the dogs promptly."
Police sergeant Tony Whitting said once a dog had been identified as a pitbull-type it could be destroyed under a court order, or it could be returned to its owners if officers were satisfied it would not constitute a danger to the public.
"If a pitbull-type dog is returned it must be owned under certain strict conditions. These are that it is micro chipped, tattooed, insured, neutered, muzzled in public and kept on a lead and held by someone 16 or over," he said.
In court, Karen Ball, prosecuting, explained how police in South Wales alerted North Devon officers to a website run by Steven Tewkesbury.
"It gave a history of how Mr Tewkesbury began breeding Staffordshire terriers 10 years ago," she said. "It gives details of dogs which have been sold and also has information of famous dog fights. It also claims one of the dogs owned by Mr Tewkesbury is descended from a famous fighting dog called Psycho."
She said one dog, called Motor, was offered for stud on the website, at a cost of £350, and there were also details of plans to have Motor and another dog, China, mate. "It's clear Mr Tewkesbury has been breeding for some time and has a respected reputation," she said.
As a result of the information seen online police raided the Tewkesburys' home in March and found four dogs. Three were identified as pitbull-type dogs. Tewkesbury, who represented himself and his wife, said he had only recently become aware they were illegal dogs.
"We didn't know until last year they were illegal type dogs," he said. "The 'pitbull Act' was for pitbulls, I was unaware of the amendment for type dogs."
Presiding magistrate Michael Buckley asked why, as a breeder, Tewkesbury was unaware.
"It's not the sort of thing you do to go home and look on the internet to see if there have been changes to the law," Tewkesbury told the court. He also insisted his dogs weren't dangerous, saying they had been brought up as family pets with his children.
Magistrate Mr Buckley asked the probation service to provide a pre-sentence report before sentencing the couple. They will return to court on May 21 for sentence and to find out whether an application for a contingent destruction order on the dogs has been successful.
If it's granted the dogs will be returned to the Tewkesburys but if they are not kept under control they will be seized and put down.
