New Zealand Dog News

Reviewing the dog news in New Zealand with editors comments. Someone needs to keep reviewing how our dogs are doing in society.

August 10, 2007

Kids at 'significant' risk from dogs

Dog attacks pose a "significant health hazard" for New Zealand, with children under five the victims in a quarter of hospital cases, research has found.

University of Otago senior lecturer David Healey, an expert in forensic dental evidence, analysed dog- bite statistics for an article in today's New Zealand Medical Journal.

"Clearly, the incidence of both fatal and non-fatal dog-bite attacks has increased in New Zealand over the past 10 years. This trend is in line with overseas findings. However, we still have a long way to go before experiencing the almost epidemic levels seen in the United States in recent years."

This is a great opportunity to ask... why? why in the last 10 years? What has changed?

1) dog left alone at home-- less mothers at home.
2) dog not socialised as they used to
3) today's social trend of 'doggie day care' reflects the sad fate of our dog's lives...
4) mother's driving kids to school. It used to be that the mom, dog, and the kids walked to school- dogs had opportunity of meeting kids.
5) kids not been socialised around dogs- kids are now afraid of dogs because media bashing, therefore parents are afraid for the kids. Dogs can sense this fear, and yamo!
6) dog now in high fenced ground, making the prey drive even more pronounced. You hear dogs bark behind the fence.-- solution, keep dogs inside, and even more caged up !
7) dog owners have less time to walk their dogs, as their busy lives take precedence. Less exercise, more boredom, more room for more sneakiness from dog...
8) what do YOU think? (comment at the end)

Prime Minister Helen Clark said this week that she favoured tough dog laws, after two-year-old Aotea Coxon was savaged by a dog in a Christchurch park.

No solution. You can't make a law about making dog user-friendly, just like you can't make a law that bans smaking..

In April, she ordered a review of dog laws after Murupara woman Virginia Ohlson was mauled to death. She said further blacklisting of breeds should be considered.

Ya but... this case was about a woman who didn't take care of her dogs... they bit her because they were mal-treated!

Mr Healey said New Zealand was known to have suffered five deaths related to dog bites.

The first was in 1969, when a farmer was killed by a mixed-breed dog.

What were the circumstances? I do know that some farmers were very cruel to their animals in those days..

Children aged under five accounted for nearly a quarter of all hospital admissions for dog bites. The high rate could probably be explained by youngsters' lack of physical strength or motor skills. They could also act in ways that animals perceived as threatening or aggressive.

"Specifically, they maintain eye contact, and their eye level is often the same as that of a dog."

I totally agree!

They were more likely to suffer injuries to the head.

Yup!

Male dogs were involved in 80 per cent of all bites and dogs that had not been neutered were more likely to bite.

Lets ban male gender... !

New Zealand appeared to compare favourably with other countries for admissions, the research says.

The incidence rate for dog bites in 2002 was 8.3 per 100,000 people - a figure similar to that previously seen in Australia.

But in the United States, the rate for bite-related hospital visits was 12.9 per 10,000 people in the early 1990s - more than 10 times the New Zealand rate.

Remember that in the United States, there are more apartment buildings in which dogs reside in. There isn't a back yard, there's just a balcony. Dog are left there to yak all day, increasing their prey drive. Obviously, this isn't the only reason, but city planning is different than here. Not that many apartment dwellers here (high rises)

Mr Healey studied the case of a Dunedin woman, Carol Taylor, who was savaged to death in 2004 by her large pet bull mastiff dog.

He said she had Huntington's disease, which could be characterised by involuntary movements, erratic behaviour and aggressiveness.

Was the dog properly exercised? What was the quality of life for the pooch?

"Coupled with a large, powerful un-neutered male dog in a small enclosed area, this factor may have tipped the balance."

And so... they take this example for the fear factor headline!

The presence of healed bites on her body suggested she had suffered a spate of aggressive incidents with the dog.

Many dog bites showed common features and awareness of these might help people avoid risky situations.

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