A FURIOUS landlord has hit back after "left wing" moaners demanded he change the name of his pub.

Mike Newton owns the Stoke-on-Trent boozer that came under fire from a charity – but insists he won't back down.

When the businessman bought the venue, in Longton, it was originally known as the Sea Lion pub.

But, after taking it over he changed it to The Old Bulldog – named after his adorable little pooch Atticus.

Now after more than a year, he is facing backlash from animal charity Peta, because of the breathing problems Bulldogs suffer.

Mike said: "I think it is very important that, while we all understand the need to provide animal welfare, our national symbols are not attacked.

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"I also think the overwhelming majority of bulldogs and flat face breeds are happy, healthy dogs and as long as their owners care for them, feed them the right diet, and give them exercise, there is absolutely no reason why there should be any ban on them.

"The real sub text is not so much animal welfare – it is more extreme left wing wokery."

The fuming landlord explained The Old Bulldog is an important part of the community and his team have created numerous jobs.

He also proudly claimed to have put £25,000 investment back into the local area.

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"We decided to change the name. The girls have got a bulldog and I have Atticus. We thought The Old Bulldog would be a good name," he added.

"We were feeling a bit insulted when we got this very patronising letter from the charity that represents the worst of wokism, telling us how to run our business.

"It has been hard enough to make money in the pub trade in recent years."

Mike actually thought Peta's letter was so utterly ridiculous it must have been a "prank".

The pub owner said: "But then it turned out to be deadly serious. I do not think big charity should interfere with the small business.

"And I also do not think that woke people should be attacking our national symbols.

"I think, in the Potteries and Staffordshire generally, we do not like being told what to do and we like to display a bit of bulldog spirit when someone comes along and says, 'This is how you have to do it'."

In the shocking letter, a Peta spokesman outlined the anatomical issues Bulldogs are bred with.

"This is the leading cause of death for bulldogs. I hope you’ll agree that breeding dogs with unnatural features that cause severe health problems is cruel," the spokesperson wrote.

"This is why restrictions have been imposed on breeding breathing-impaired breeds in Norway and the Netherlands and why many other countries are looking to follow suit."

The charity even offered to pay towards a new sign and help create an "adorable mutt-focused design".

This comes as other pubs across the UK have been called to change their names.

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Pub giant, Greene King, are set to storm ahead with plans to rename a Scots pub name amid a racism row.

And, the historic 'The Black Boy' pub in Kent, will change its name after 404 years over fears it will put off customers.

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