‘Shattered to bits’: Dog owner arrested after jogger mauled in north Brisbane park. A Brisbane dog owner has defended her pets as “really good dogs” during a dramatic police arrest, after the animals left a jogger fighting for his life.

Please be aware that this link contains an image of a dead kiwi.

Article text:

A Northland woman has pleaded guilty to owning a dog that killed four kiwi during a spate of wildlife deaths at an isolated bay last year.

Rose Paraha, 55, admitted the charge laid by the Department of Conservation when she appeared in the Kaikohe District Court last week.

Court documents show the birds were killed around 27 December at Wharengaere Bay, on Purerua Peninsula in the northern Bay of Islands.

Paraha is due to be sentenced in January.

The dog, identified from saliva found on the dead birds, was a female pitbull-cross named Heaven.

Wharengaere Bay has been a hotspot for kiwi maulings for several years, with DOC estimating 20 deaths caused by dogs last year alone.

Two dogs were seized from Paraha's home by council animal control staff in January this year, but RNZ understands only one could be linked to the dead kiwi by DNA testing.
The other dog was returned.

It is not the first time Paraha has been in court for owning a dog that killed wildlife.

After an earlier spate of kiwi deaths, in 2019, she pleaded guilty to owning a dog that caused the deaths of six kiwi.
Some of the dead birds were found on the lawn outside her home.

On that occasion she was convicted and ordered to pay $300 in reparations.

No fine was imposed because she did not have the means to pay.

The dog, which had been allowed to roam freely, was destroyed.

Last year's kiwi deaths at Wharengaere Bay include nine between late January and early March, four found dead on the beach in November, and the four found on 26 and 27 December.

Purerua Peninsula is home to one of the biggest populations of North Island brown kiwi in the country, and has the highest kiwi call count recorded in New Zealand.

The peninsula also boasts a major community- and hapū-led conservation initiative, Predator-free Purerua-Mataroa.
Elsewhere in the Bay of Islands, at least six kiwi were killed in Ōpua Forest, near Paihia, in 2023.

Post-mortem examinations found the Ōpua kiwi had been mauled by dogs but the owners were never identified. Another spate occurred at Wharau Road, east of Kerikeri, in 2015, when at least eight kiwi were killed.

In that case, two owners were fined for failing to keep their dogs under control and three dogs were destroyed.

In 2021, a Russell man with previous convictions relating to roaming dogs was fined a record $4500 for owning a dog that caused the deaths of two kiwi.

https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2026/10/17/cherokee-county-man-unrecognizable-after-breaking-up-fight-between-two-family-dogs/

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — A Cherokee County man suffered severe facial injuries while breaking up a fight between two family dogs.

Now he’s asking for help to pay for facial reconstructive surgery critical to his recovery.

Life changed in a split second when Dustin Low tried to break up a fight between two family pets.

“It was probably a matter of five minutes total action time, and then the rest was just trying to gather myself, my breath and control the bleeding,” Low said

His wife, Chelsea, recalls the night she looked at her husband and noticed his facial tissue had been badly damaged.

“He came downstairs and was like, ‘I need help with the pets.’ I’m like, ‘No, you need a hospital,’” Chelsea recalled.

Medical bills for the surgeries have been stacking up, and Low’s final surgery will help him return to a sense of normalcy.

“We need $12,310 just to get him on the operating table for the third surgery. They will not do the third surgery until we pay $12,310. That’s for the first two surgeries. The last surgery is $6,500,” Chelsea said.

“It will get rid of this piece, which is the rest of my forehead flap, and it will sew that back up,” Low said.

As Dustin and Chelsea pray for a miracle, they said they don’t hold anger toward the dogs and plan to keep them.

“It was a mistake. It was a freak accident. They didn’t want to hurt him,” Chelsea said.

WINTER GARDEN, Fla - An Orange County woman is recovering from a severe leg injury after she says she placed her body over her infant daughter's stroller to protect the child from a neighbor's dog that attacked her. 

She is questioning why the animal was still in the neighborhood despite previous reports of aggression.

‘Most unimaginable pain’

What they're saying:

Katie Blacketor said the attack happened Oct. 9 as she was with her 4-month-old daughter, Harley.

"He came from behind me and yanked my leg out from under me," Blacketor said. "The dog was just thrashing me back and forth. Oh, like the worst, most unimaginable pain that you can think of."

As the dog bit her leg, Blacketor said she focused on protecting her daughter.

"I just laid on top of the stroller, covered it with my body to protect her," she said.

Blacketor said she feared the dog would turn on her baby if it released its grip on her.

"All I'm trying to think is like, is there anything I can do? Should I do anything? Cause like, if he lets go of me, like my baby is the next target," she said.

Blacketor received nine stitches. Doctors are monitoring her for infection and plan to assess whether she has ligament damage after the swelling subsides.

She also faces a series of rabies shots because the dog, identified as Kobe, was not current on its rabies vaccinations.

"The dog is not up-to-date on its rabies vaccines, and so we're doing the rabies protocol now, which is a series of shots over 14 days," Blacketor said.

Previous reports involving the dog

Dig deeper:

According to Orange County Animal Services records described in the report, Kobe had been involved in two earlier incidents involving other dogs.

On June 25, the dog was reportedly being walked off-leash when it lunged at another dog. Animal Services said there was no physical contact and the other dog's owner did not provide a written statement, leaving the agency with insufficient evidence to issue a citation.

About two and a half weeks before that incident, Kobe was reportedly off-leash when it attacked a dog named Vader, a 9-year-old miniature schnauzer being walked by its owner.

Vader was taken to an animal hospital with puncture wounds around his neck, bite marks on his body and an eye injury, according to the account.

Vader's owner said the dog intervened when Kobe went after her two young children.

Animal Services cited Kobe's owner in connection with the earlier incident, with fines totaling $640, according to the report

Images of dogs start at 42 seconds into the video.

Only pit bull type dogs were seized, no other breeds.

Father, son tied to federal dogfighting investigation in Harford County

WHITEFORD, Md. — What started with a complaint about dogs living in inhumane conditions at a Whiteford home has now led to a federal dogfighting investigation involving a father and son.

The investigation traces back to a citizen's complaint last July about dogs living in inhumane conditions at a home on Eagles Grove Court in Whiteford. Investigators say they later found items used to train dogs to fight, implicating 48-year-old Theodore Stinson and his 25-year-old son, also named Theodore Stinson.

At the Humane Society of Harford County in Fallston, half of the shelter’s dogs awaiting adoption are pit bulls, and Marketing Director Erin Long says those who train them for blood sport do a disservice to the entire breed.

“We have people all the time telling us, ‘I’m looking for a specific type of dog and I don’t even want to consider a pit bull,” said Long.

Adding to the misperception of the dogs as being inherently aggressive, when often that stems from abuse or neglect.

“It just boggles my mind that we still are hearing about people that are dog fighting,” said Long, “I think that, as a society, we should be bothered by that, because people that are doing that are doing that, that get excited by that, they’re lacking any compassion and empathy at all, which is scary.”

She simply wanted to have a coffee before starting her workday. Her morning, however, took an unexpected turn: a professional woman in Padua was attacked by an Amstaff (a medium-to-large, short-haired dog) while sitting in the outdoor seating area of ​​the café "Pollini Due," located in the heart of the historic center of the city. The incident occurred around 9:30 a.m. on Monday, October 12. The woman had stopped by the café—situated at the corner of Riviera dei Ponti Romani and Via Cesare Battisti—for her usual breakfast before heading up to her office. Suddenly, she was set upon by the powerful American Staffordshire Terrier, which lunged at her head, taking advantage of a momentary lapse in attention by the dog sitter who was walking it. The dog bit the woman, tearing out hair and injuring her scalp—all in front of a group of terrified university students (the café is just steps away from "Il Bo," the main building of the University of Padua). Upon witnessing the attack, the students began to scream, alerting those nearby.

The Complaint

After a few moments, the Amstaff released its grip. Bleeding, the woman was comforted by bystanders and then taken to the emergency room, where she received medical treatment and was discharged with a seven-day recovery prognosis. Before leaving, she filed a formal complaint with the assistance of the medical staff who treated her. She also provided further details: the owner of the dog that attacked her reportedly works in the same building where she has her professional office. She noted that, on a previous occasion, the dog had already "targeted" her in the building's entrance hall, though at that time it had only growled. Furthermore, according to the woman’s account, the Amstaff had attacked other dogs in the past; to make matters worse, the dog sitter who was "looking after" it took advantage of the post-attack chaos to slip away, claiming that the American Staffordshire Terrier "just wanted to play."

Article link: https://corrieredelveneto.corriere.it/notizie/padova/cronaca/26_ottobre_14/padova-azzannata-alla-testa-da-un-cane-amstaff-mentre-beve-il-caffe-al-tavolino-del-bar-e49f8ebf-d92f-4d5a-a723-9ab8d7122xlk.shtml

L’AQUILA – The civil parties have requested compensation totaling nearly 800,000 euros following the death of 74-year-old Margherita Villante, who was mauled by a pit bull on July 16, 2024, and subsequently passed away at the hospital in L’Aquila on February 27 of last year. The owner of the dog—which had escaped her supervision—73-year-old Nicolina Perilli (also a resident of L’Aquila), reached a plea bargain for a one-year prison sentence, with the benefit of a suspended sentence; she was represented by defense attorneys Paolo Vecchioli and Massimiliano Nardecchia. According to Donatella Boccabella, the lawyer representing the civil parties, the hearing is expected to take place in February of next year, though official confirmation from the court is still pending.

During her eight-month hospitalization, the 74-year-old underwent the partial amputation of both arms and was awaiting the fitting of prostheses. However, complications caused her clinical condition to deteriorate rapidly, leading to her death in the intensive care unit, where she had been admitted in the immediate aftermath of the dog attack.

The autopsy—considered a decisive piece of evidence from the outset—linked her death to the dog attack, despite the time that had elapsed. A request by the defense for an expert assessment, which sought to attribute the woman’s death to other causes, proved unsuccessful.

The five-year-old dog had escaped its owner’s control after slipping through a door that had been left open inadvertently by a young woman who had arrived for a private mathematics lesson. The escape went unnoticed by the two women with the dog, which in the meantime had reached the neighboring house—located in the hamlet of Sant’Elia—where an elderly woman and her sister were staying; when they opened the door, they were attacked by the pit bull. Only after some time did the dog’s owner, hearing the screams, come outside; in an attempt to stop the animal, she too was injured and subsequently required medical treatment. The matter will now go to court regarding civil damages.

Article link: https://www.abruzzoweb.it/laquila-donna-sbranata-e-uccisa-dal-pitbull-chiesti-danni-per-800-mila-euro-udienza-a-febbraio-2027/

The incident took place near a bar late on the evening of October 13. Both dogs were on leashes when the sudden attack occurred. The large dog eventually released its grip, and the small dog was rescued and taken to a veterinarian. The Red Cross and the police arrived at the scene.

Moments of terror unfolded on Viale Dante late on the evening of October 13. A pit bull mauled a small white dog and then fled with its prey in its mouth. Both animals were being held on leashes by their respective owners when the sudden attack took place near a bar. Both the owners and several patrons attempted to stop the large dog, but to no avail. Only after a few minutes did the large dog let go; the small dog was immediately attended to by its owner, who, in turn, suffered a medical episode and was examined by Red Cross personnel. Police officers are currently reconstructing the events and gathering accounts from witnesses.

Article link: https://www.ilpiacenza.it/cronaca/pitbull-azzanna-un-piccolo-cane-in-un-bar-e-scappa-con-la-preda-in-bocca-paura-in-via-dante.html

A 37-year-old man is fighting for life after being mauled and dragged off a bike track by two loose pit bulls near Westfield Chermside in Brisbane's north just after 6pm on Friday. Police launched a major operation using a helicopter and loudspeakers to warn residents to stay indoors, successfully capturing one dog around 8pm while the second pit bull remains at large.

Breed not confirmed. I guess we will see.

See mod comment for breed confirmation. It’s also in the video linked in the article below ⬇️

https://www.wfla.com/news/pasco-county/woman-hospitalized-with-life-threatening-injuries-after-dog-attack-in-port-richey/amp/

PORT RICHEY, Fla. (WFLA) — A woman was taken to the hospital after being attacked by a dog in Port Richey on Friday.

According to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, around 2:12 p.m., deputies responded to a call regarding an animal bite in the Sandstone Lane area.

Preliminary information indicates a woman was attacked by a dog and taken to a hospital with life threatening injuries, the sheriff’s office reported.

Only 8 On Your Side was on scene as the dog believed to be responsible for the attack was taken out of the home and into the custody of animal services.
Crew on scene also saw another woman at the home with a bloody bandage wrapped around her leg. Neighbors tell 8 On Your Side that she is the victim’s daughter.

Animal services said they will hold the dog until the sheriff’s office finishes its investigation. Animal services will then conduct a “dangerous dog investigation” to determine the fate of the animal.

This came across my feed. The owner put down the dog immediately and warned others against getting pits. Of course the comments are blaming him.

i don’t know if she’s still active in the community, but she has posted in here previously about her daughter’s attack.

What's infuriating is that these pits have attacked before and they were simply returned to their owners to do it again. Glad there was an adult there to save the child at least.

Currently trying to get and update to see if the dogs were found and handled appropriately this time.

The man had the pit on a leash, but it killed him and would not let the responders approach, so the police had to take action. Detectives confirmed it was his dog.

Summary:

Dogs impounded after attacks

Bull breeds made up up to about 56% of dogs impounded after attacks (389 of "more than 700"): pit bull terriers about 23%,
Staffordshire bull terriers about 21%,
American Staffordshire terriers about 12%

Roaming Dogs

Bull breeds were about 72% of the top four breeds picked up for roaming (1,989 of 2,749): Staffordshire bull terriers 1,203 (about 44%) and pit bull terriers 786 (about 29%), ahead of Shar Peis 382 and Labradors 378.

Article here:

Dog attacks across Auckland have fallen for the first time in six years, but the number of children being mauled continues to rise.

The latest council figures reveal nearly 300 dogs were put down after attacks or rushing incidents, while thousands of owners were fined for failing to control their pets.

Auckland Council’s Animal Management Annual Report shows 246 children aged 15 and under were attacked by dogs during the 2025/26 financial year, up nearly 8% on the previous year.

Regulatory and Safety Committee chairwoman Josephine Bartley said the figures represented real harm to Auckland families.

“Behind those numbers are some horrific injuries, many of them on children that will leave lifelong scars.”

She said animal management officers faced an uphill battle unless more owners took responsibility for their dogs.

Dog attacks fall for first time in six years

The rise in attacks on children comes despite improvement across the city, with reported dog attacks falling for the first time since 2019/20.
Council officers investigated 2722 attacks, down 5% from the previous year.

Of those, 1222 involved people and 1500 involved other animals.

Attacks on adults fell by more than 12%, while those involving children increased.

The report also said 255 dogs were put down after attacks, compared with 290.

Another 35 were euthanised after rushing at people or animals.

More than 700 dogs were seized and taken to council shelters after attacks, while officers responded to nearly 3500 reports of aggressive behaviour, a 10% drop on the previous year.

Pit bull terriers were the most commonly impounded breed after attacks, with 161 taken to shelters.

The number of Staffordshire bull terriers impounded after attacks rose from 105 to 146, while American Staffordshire terriers increased from 46 to 82.

Henderson-Massey overtook Manurewa as the Auckland local board area with the most reported dog attacks, recording 297 incidents over the year.
That was an 18% increase from the year before, when 251 were reported in the area.
Meanwhile, the number in Manurewa dropped from 308 to 268 attacks.

Recent Herald reporting revealed a Mt Albert mother was considering moving her family after three frightening dog encounters in less than a month, including one that left her teenage son with puncture wounds.

In another incident, 83-year-old Mike Smith was left with deep bites and scratches after being attacked by two dogs tethered to a chair while walking in Huapai, West Auckland.

Smith, who faced a long recovery, said he felt “lucky to be alive” after the attack.

The report also revealed a significant reduction in complaints about roaming dogs, with Auckland Council receiving 12,592 reports, down nearly 25% from 16,739 the previous year.

Requests for officers to collect stray dogs that members of the public had caught or contained also dropped from 5223 to 4090.

Reports of roaming dogs and requests to collect strays made up more than 60% of all calls for help received by the council’s animal management team.
The number of dogs taken to shelters after being found on private property without permission increased from 97 to 109.

Staffordshire bull terriers were the most common breed picked up for roaming, with 1203 dogs, down from 1767 a year earlier.

Pit bull terriers followed with 786, down from 1288, while Shar Peis accounted for 382 and Labrador retrievers 378.

The council also responded to 537 reports of wandering farm animals on public roads and motorways, down from 710 the previous year.

Meanwhile, thousands more fines were issued to dog owners who failed to keep their animals under control.

Fines for failing to control a dog jumped nearly 69%, from 2064 to 3486.

Another 967 fines were issued to owners who failed to keep their dogs properly secured or contained, more than double the 373 issued the year prior.

Failed out of service training for temperament. In the comments, owner admits it is not good with small animals or children. Ticking time bomb.

This article is about dog bites in general however San Antonio has had several high profile pit bull attacks and this covers the pit bull mauling death of Ramon Najera. We also know what breeds are responsible for more severe and fatal maulings.

Article

Cases of dog bites are increasing in San Antonio, with a growing share of incidents classified as severe.  

San Antonio news: Selfies with inmates, Poll shows Dems leading, Terry Black’s Barbecue
Dog bites have long been recognized by officials as a public health concern. An Express-News analysis of San Antonio Animal Care Services data shows that, in the last five years, reports of the most serious bites have risen much faster than bite reports overall.

Animal Care Services recorded 2,696 bites in 2020, including 134 classified as severe. By 2025, the agency recorded 3,149 bites, 511 of which were classified as severe. That represents an increase of roughly 281% in severe recorded bites, compared with a 17% increase in recorded bites overall.

Severe dog bites make up a growing share of San Antonio cases

San Antonio’s reported dog bites have remained roughly steady over the past six years, but the number classified as “severe” has increased more than those classified as “mild” or “moderate.”

"Unfounded” bite cases, in which evidence of an attack was inconclusive, made up less than 1% of all reported bite reports and are not shown.
Chart: Wesley RatkoSource: City of San Antonio | Animal Control Services

The overall severity mix also shifted. Mild bites made up about 65% of records in 2020 but 56% in 2025. Moderate bites declined from 24% to about 23%, while severe bites increased from about 5% to more than 16%.

A bite is considered severe when it results in a deep, wide or disfiguring wound; exposes fatty tissue; breaks bones; requires multiple staples, stitches or cosmetic surgery; or results in death. A bite involving a child younger than 10 also may be classified as severe when the child suffers a moderate wound to the head.

Bite classification standards and examples were formally adopted by the city in December 2024 as part of an effort to ensure standardization of its records. But the change in standards does not entirely explain the increase in the number of severe cases, which began well before the end of 2024.

Every year, stories of aggressive or dangerous dogs make the news. The February 2023 mauling death of 81-year-old Ramon Najera resulted in criminal charges against the owner of the dogs that attacked him and prompted city officials to step up enforcement.

Since then, Animal Care Services has issued criminal citations to dog owners whose unrestrained pets leave their property and bite someone. Attacking dogs are quarantined for 10 days and monitored for rabies.

Of the 1,620 severe bite records from 2020 through 2025, 77% listed quarantine or isolation as the dog’s outcome. The records also listed 106 cases in which a stray was not found, seven in which the dog could not be captured, and 86 in which the dog was killed and its remains sent for rabies testing. Animal Care Services, San Antonio’s local rabies-control authority, said it sends the animal’s head to a laboratory, where brain tissue is tested.

Jonathan Gary, director of San Antonio Animal Care Services, said Mr. Najera’s death raised awareness about the importance of reporting bites to the city. He said historically bites by family pets often go unreported because owners fear what could happen to their dogs. 

The December 2024 update to bite-classification standards likely also contributed to the rise in records classified as severe, Gary added.

He said he asked staff to examine bite records more closely to identify ways to prevent bites. Additionally, Gary said the city’s Pet Care Connect program, which provides free spay and neuter services for pets, is focused on neighborhoods with high numbers of calls about free-roaming dogs.

“We’re trying to prevent bites before they happen,” Gary said.

Isliana Norwood, president of Alamo City Pit Bull Rescue, said she sees the increase in severe bites as a trickle-down result of an increase in adoptions during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“We saw a huge rise in people adding companion animals to their home during this time in a bubble, where everybody was spending more time at home,” Norwood said. She said this led to owners raising dogs that aren’t used to the presence of other people, only to have that change suddenly once the pandemic isolation ceased and things opened up again. 
Norwood said preventing bites also depends on owners understanding their dogs’ limits and setting boundaries.

“It is our responsibility as a dog owner to keep our dog safe, but to also keep the public safe,” Norwood said. “The best way that people can do that is by truly knowing their dog and not putting it into situations where they don’t know the outcome without also putting boundaries or management in place.”

https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/san-antonio-severe-dog-bites-data-22418386.php

I have a puppy who will be 20 lbs or less full grown. This one especially makes me sick.

Another person victimized while just walking! The GoFundMe was posted on October 12, 2026. Location Texas, the victim was taken to a trauma center in Houston.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-cassie-recover-from-dog-attack-injuries