There are calls for urgent action after yet another fatal dog attack.
The death of a 62-year-old woman in Northland marks the fourth fatal dog attack in four years.
It’s while dog-related injuries and hospitalisations rise every year.
Northland fatal dog attack sparks fresh calls for law reform – The Front Page
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ACC statistics show 29,220 dog-related injuries in 2024-25, with nearly half of these (14,120) being dog-bite injuries.
SPCA chief scientific officer Dr Arnja Dale told The Front Page that there should be evidence-based law reform, not a knee-jerk reaction.
“We’ve been calling for action since 2015 and meeting with successive ministers over the years.
“People are just saying, this is not acceptable. This is not safe ... We know that we have had more fatalities in the last few years. We used to have one every three years, and that was not acceptable either.
“Our focus as a country must be on stopping the attacks before they happen, not just reacting afterwards.
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“We need a nationwide, evidence-based approach, which is modern, contemporary legislation that actually focuses on behavioural science and preventative measures. We need consistent enforcement. We need responsible breeding. We need early behavioural intervention,” she said.
Dale said that what we’re seeing is not enough.
“The reason it’s not enough is that we don’t have central Government leadership.
“At the moment, it’s a lottery postcode how your council’s going to respond because we don’t have these tools to ensure that proportionate evidence-based interventions are actually in place,” she said.
Te Toka Tumai Auckland Adult Emergency Department emergency specialist Dr Natasha Duncan-Sutherland said dog control legislation, especially that which reduced the dog population, was the most effective strategy.
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“A further effective strategy in one country was the introduction of mandatory notification of dog-related injuries by veterinarians and health professionals, which decreased insurance claims for DRIs by nearly a third,” she said.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about:
- Prevention, data and education.
- The limits of breed banning.
- Dangers of roaming dogs.
- Early intervention.
The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the New Zealand Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5pm. The podcast is presented by Chelsea Daniels, an Auckland-based journalist with a background in world news and crime/justice reporting who joined NZME in 2016.
You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.