Tattie and Spud were resting their paws on Tuesday morning when they were suddenly set upon in their Melaleuca Drive backyard.
The attackers, three Staffordshire bull terriers, allegedly jumped the fence to get to the defenceless pugs.
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| Tattie and Spud. Tattie died from the attack, and Spud is undergoing surgery to survive. |
The [pit bulls] were unregistered, had been known in the neighbourhood as serial offenders and had been the subject of complaints to the council before the incident.
Tattie was apparently asleep in her kennel when she was ripped out and mauled to death.
A neighbour heard the commotion and alerted Maitland City Council, which sent a ranger to attend the scene.
When he arrived he was confronted with a gruesome scene of carnage but managed to separate the dogs.
On Wednesday vets at Greenhills Veterinary Hospital performed emergency surgery on Spud, who had his biceps and triceps ripped off his bones and is clinging to life.
A veterinary spokeswoman said Tattie’s state was too graphic to publish and described Spud’s injuries as ‘‘horrific’’.
‘‘Because of the extent of his injuries he’s not out of the woods yet,’’ she said.
‘‘We performed a very involved and complicated surgery and he’s in a critical but stable condition.’’
Tattie and Spud’s owner Renee Blakemore was at work at the time but is glad she didn’t witness the attack.
She believes the Staffies’ owner should suffer consequences for neglectful ownership and wants them banned from owning dogs again.
‘‘It could have easily been a child but we don’t have children. The pugs are our babies,’’ she said.
‘‘I was told I should be happy with the dogs being euthanased but it’s not good enough.
‘‘[The owner] has control of where her dogs are and I want her charged. I want justice for my little dogs.’’
Neighbours have supported Renee and her husband Dustin, claiming the attack was not an isolated incident.
Julie, who did not wish to have her surname printed, said the dogs were often let loose on the Metford street and had been responsible for other examples of aggressive behaviour.
‘‘One of them cornered my son while he was taking our dog for a walk and a neighbour had to chase it away,’’ she said.
‘‘They also got into another neighbour’s yard and killed their guinea pigs.
‘‘Every time they get out they’re very aggressive. I’ve called the ranger about it many a time. The owner should be banned [from keeping dogs].’’
He confirmed the dogs were unregistered and that council had logged four complaints about them since 2011.
‘‘On each occasion a ranger has attended the address but allegations haven’t been substantiated,’’ he said.
‘‘We need to do a thorough investigation to make sure evidence is robust and will then look to take prosecution action.’’
(The Herald - May 17, 2013)
