AUSTRALIA -- A woman has been ordered to pay almost $1000 after her dog bit a woman in the back and leg, leaving a series of puncture wounds.
The owner of the dog, Rebecca Smith-Thompson, failed to attend the hearing at Dromana Magistrates Court' after the attack.
The court heard how Anna Pollander had been visiting her daughter's home in Mornington when she had gone outside for a cigarette.
The dog, a black and white heeler called Gypsy, bit Mrs Pollander in the back and leg.
"It hurt, I fell over and I screamed for help," Mrs Pollander told the court.
The dog ran under a car and into next door's yard.
Mrs Pollander needed hospital treatment for a large bite mark and 10 puncture wounds.
Shire ranger Melanie Dawson told the court she attended the incident at Tanti Avenue and issued the owner with a caution.
"She said she owned the dog but was unsure if she was registered," Ms Dawson said.
"I asked if she knew of the attack. She said boys could have been playing and left the gate open. She said she hadn't registered the dog because she had no money."
Shire prosecutor Colin McLean said Ms Smith-Thompson did register the dog after the incident, but then failed to renew it when it lapsed earlier this year. He said the dog was still unregistered.
Ms Smith-Thompson failed to attend court and Magistrate Franz Holzer found the case proved in her absence.
She was ordered to pay an $800 fine and $107.80 costs.
(mornington-peninsula-leader.whereilive.com.au - Dec 4, 2012)
