Thirteen puppies belonging to a former assistant dog warden were confiscated last week and may be destroyed as they are illegal under a new dog ban.

The controversial ban on certain dangerous breeds, put into place by former Environment Minister Dennis Lister just days before July's General Election this year, includes a breed called the Fila Brasilero, which Gino Arthur Brangman insists caused no problems in Bermuda and does not belong on the list.

"I'm just about ready to start screaming cruelty," he told The Royal Gazette, adding that the week-old puppies have not seen a vet since they were born and are being kept in a tiny cage with their mother where they are not let out to go to the bathroom unless Mr. Brangman is there.

The puppies were confiscated from Mr. Brangman's house by Government dog warden Jeffrey Benevides last week when they were just three days old. Though dog wardens did not want to take the puppies' mother, Mr. Brangman insisted they do so, as the puppies were too young to be separated from her.

Now Mr. Brangman has taken out an injunction against the Government to prevent the dogs from being put to sleep until his has had his day in court. He is awaiting a court date, and said he felt a court decision would be stronger than a ministerial one.

"I would love for other people affected by this ban to contact me," he said.

Although Mr. Benevides told Mr. Brangman the puppies could be seen by the Government vet, Mr. Brangman said he did not trust the Government which, he alleged, was trying to kill his puppies.

"The puppies are getting bigger," he said. "There is not enough room in the cage."

Mr. Brangman was an assistant dog warden from 1988 to 1989. He later moved to the Parks Department but has always maintained an active interest in dogs and dog breeding.

Several years ago he was given a Fila Brasilero bitch by the Government dog wardens, who said they were aware of Mr. Brangman's experience with dogs, and added if they could not leave the dog with Mr. Brangman, they would have to put it to sleep. Mr. Brangman, who had wanted a Fila for years, accepted the dog.

Then, he said, four years ago Government gave him permission to breed the dog in an experiment to observe Filas from birth and see if they warranted being on the dog ban list.

"I am the only person in Bermuda that breeds Fila Brasileros," Mr. Brangman said. "They have not caused any problems in these Islands, so I can not see why they are on the list.

"I thought we were working together," he said, adding that he had sent invitations to the dog wardens to come and observe his Fila litter, but not one came.

After the first litter, Mr. Brangman said he had two more litters, one of which was a Fila-Rottweiler cross. Both those litters were unintentional, he said, explaining that though he had attempted to keep his Fila females separate from other males, there had been times when he was unsuccessful.

However he did not feel that warranted the dogs being on the ban list, and added there were several other dogs in Bermuda that were not on the list but should be, such as the Belgian Malinonis used by the Bermuda Police.

There are two lawsuits pending regarding attacks by Belgian Malinonis, he said, yet they are not on the list. "It's not right," he said. "I want to stop this ban completely."

Neither Mr. Benevides nor Environment Minister Neletha Butterfield could be contacted by The Royal Gazette yesterday.