Did you know that one child a week ends up at a Sydney hospital needing treatment for injuries caused by dog bites? In June 2022, a 4-year-old boy ended up with a fat lip, following an unfortunate attack by a dog in Coogee Oval.
Whilst the boy has since recovered, a new study has highlighted the need for better education about dog ownership, especially for families with children.
Data from the Sydney Children‘s Hospital (SCH) showed that the average age of a victim of dog attack is 5 years old. In 2022, about 1,027 dog bites were reported in NSW in the first three months.
The most number of cases reported were for dog attacks involving a Pitbull (10.3%) followed closely by Labradors (8.5%). The council with the highest number of dog attacks was Lake Lake Macquarie with 61 cases from 1 Jan to 31 March 2022.
Within a 10-year period, 628 patients were admitted to the hospital following a dog attack. The average clinical cost for dog injury treatment was $2,968.
| BREED | INCIDENTS |
| Pitbull | 10.3% |
| Labrador | 8.5% |
| Rottweiler | 6.8% |
| Bulldog | 6% |
| Border Collie | 6% |
| Jack Russell | 5.1% |
| Terrier (other) | 5.1% |
| Kelpie | 5.1% |
| German shepherd | 4.3% |
| Others | 42.7% |
| COUNCIL | INCIDENTS |
| Lake Macquarie | 61 |
| Blacktown | 59 |
| Northern Beaches | 44 |
| Sutherland Shire | 36 |
| Wollongong | 34 |
| Newcastle | 26 |
| Maitland | 26 |
| Mid Coast | 26 |
| Byron Shire | 22 |
The dog attack at the Coogee Oval was believed to be either a pitbull or a Staffordshire terrier that was playing catch with his owner a few metres away from a father and his toddler.
The 4-year-old was attempting to pick up his footy from the ground when the dog went after him and bit his face, presumably thinking it was his ball the child was picking up.
The family mercifully did not want the dog to be put down. However, they made sure to report the incident to the police so the dog’s owner could be found and measures are taken to ensure that the attack does not happen to another family.
Dr Ahmad Sulaiman, who led the study, said that families should understand the risk of interacting with man’s best friend.
Dogs must be trained to respect space, especially with children. Parents, on the other hand, must be able to determine cues and stress signals from the dog’s body language as incidents don’t just spring up and dogs will always give off a warning.
