Animal advocates urge stronger enforcement as hundreds of dog attacks recorded in three years.
Dogs have attacked nearly 270 people in the Far North in three years.
Council data revealed more than 770 attacks between 2022/23 to 2024/25. Attacks on people, pets, livestock and wildlife were recorded.
The information was revealed by the Far North District Council through a Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act (LGOIMA) request made by the Northland Age.
Of the reported dog attacks, 269 involved dogs attacking people.
The 2023/24 year had the highest number of these attacks, with 101. There were 83 in 2022/23, and 85 recorded in 2024/25. The remaining incidents involved other dogs (240), stock (106), poultry (84), cats (53) and other domestic animals or wildlife (24).
Attacks on stock have fluctuated over the past three years, dropping from 54 in 2022/23 to 30 the following year, but up to 48 in 2024/25. Dog-on-dog attacks have stayed relatively steady: 77 in 2022/23, 87 in 2023/24 and 76 in 2024/25.
The FNDC was not able to provide specific information such as the severity of injuries, the breeds involved, victim information and action taken against owners, saying the request would require “substantial coalition or research”.
The council referred to public information on animal control incidents on their website, but it provided limited insight into trends or the outcomes of the recorded attacks.
Dog advocates said most attacks could be prevented through responsible ownership and stronger enforcement.
They believe dogs become aggressive when they’re neglected, mistreated or left to roam.
Bay of Islands Animal Rescue founder Summer Johnson emphasised that mandatory desexing, bans on chaining and tougher action against irresponsible owners are essential to breaking the cycle of neglect and attacks.
“No backyard breeding, bitches being overbred, producing dogs with behaviour, health and genetic issues. We need mandatory desexing and a full ban on chaining and caging dogs, as chaining a dog changes a dog’s behaviour towards people and other animals.”
“Council needs to be prosecuting bad owners, not just impounding the dogs, because they will just replace that dog with another and then the cycle continues.”
Bay of Islands Watchdogs co-ordinator Leonie Exel said every dog owner could choose to ensure their dog is safe.
“When a dog is socialised as a puppy with other dogs and people, gets regular walks, has a full belly and is treated as a part of our family, they are our best mates,.” she said.
“When a dog is unloved and hungry, chained for long periods, and left to roam alone or with other dogs, they are set up to fail by their owners.”
She echoed the importance of desexing and its role in dog attacks.
“As individuals, we can reduce the risk of dog attacks by de-sexing our dogs, by learning about how to be a good dog owner, and by teaching our tamariki how to stay safe around dogs.
“If we think that a local dog is being treated badly, we can speak to the owner and help them out with free food or with walking the dog. If that doesn’t help or isn’t safe, we can call the SPCA or district council, both of which have the funding, power and mandate to ensure that all dogs have adequate shelter, water and food.
“Our district councils also have powers under the Dog Control Act 1996 to run community education programmes to help to prevent dog attacks and promote dog safety. Research shows clearly that these programmes can reduce the severity and frequency of dog bites, especially when they are designed by and for specific communities.”
The Far North has faced ongoing issues with roaming and dangerous dogs.
In the FNDC’s 2023/24 Annual Report, a resident survey found that 16% of residents were very satisfied/satisfied with how the council’s animal management team managed dogs in the district. It was down from 28% in 2023.
It was among the biggest decreases in the survey, having gone down by 19% when compared to the previous year.