Jury Makes Recommendations after Rottweilers Mauled and Killed Toddler (B.C., Canada)

[Rene Allegrini]

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B.C. Jury Makes Recommendations after Rottweilers Mauled and Killed Toddler
By Harry Hosford

Following a pack of Rottweilers mauling a 3-year-old BC boy to death a jury has made recommendations that the Ministry of Health and the province's Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals set up a registry to document all serious dog bites

One bite from a Rottweiler would have been enough to kill three-year-old Cody John Anger. So when a pack of rottweilers set upon the toddler in his home in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, death was the only certain result.

During the coroner's inquest yesterday, the jury concluded that Cody's death was an accident and recommended the Ministry of Health and the province's Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals implement a registry to record all serious dog bites.

The jury also recommended the B.C. Ministry of Education and the SPCA develop dog-bite prevention lessons for Grade 3 pupils.

One of the world's foremost dog behavioural experts testified at the five-person jury inquest that a Rottweiler's jaw is capable of applying 2000 pounds per square inch of pressure.

Three adult Rottweilers, ranging in weight from 70 to 95 pounds, were in the room when the toddler was mauled so severely that medical staff needed trauma counseling after the child's body was brought to the hospital.

The toddler, weighing only 37 pounds, was found with multiple puncture wounds, his jugular veins severed and his windpipe torn.

"A Rottweiler can knock a man down," said Stanley Coren, a psychology professor at the University of British Columbia. "There is an edginess in the dog's personality and just their size is enough. Rottweilers can weigh about 140 pounds, and they may not be trying to cause difficulty."

Professor Coren, who has written nine books on the relationship between dogs and humans, said Rottweilers are not a recommended breed for families with children. Originally bred to guard butchers' carts while owners were delivering meat, the sheer size of the dogs means that even bumping or stepping on a toddler could cause serious injuries, he said.

While Rottweilers make up only 1.5 per cent of all the registered dogs in data kept by the American Kennel Club, Coren said they account for 16 per cent of all documented fatal dog bites.

Additionally, he said, having more than one Rottweiler in the house exponentially increased the risk of an incident involving the toddler. However, he dispelled the myth that dogs in a pack are inherently more dangerous.

"Pack-dog mentality is dependent on the actions of the dog considered the leader by the other animals," he said. "If the lead dog is not aggressive, the other dogs in the pack will not become aggressive."

Coren said it is nearly impossible to determine exactly what caused the dogs to attack the boy. He said that the
Rottweilers would not attack a sleeping child, so likely the child was playing or behaving in some way that provoked the dogs into aggression.

Coren recommended training for dogs and their owners, but said a breed ban would not be the perfect fix. About 53 per cent of all fatal dog attacks are on children, and the best bet, he said, is education and training.

Sheri Fontaine, the toddler's mother, said she is hopeful the jury's recommendations will help other families in the future.

The child died on December 27th, 2004. Fontaine said yesterday she is determined never to forget how her son, the youngest of four, spent that Christmas and Boxing Day playing and laughing with his siblings.

After the attack, the provincial Ministry of Children and Family Development put Fontaine's other three children in foster care.

Since her son's death, Fontaine, a convicted drug dealer, said her main priority has been trying to regain custody of her remaining children.

In addition to the education and dog-bite registry suggestions, the jury also recommended the Ministry of Children and Family Development, which had been involved in the Fontaine household long before the attack, conduct risk assessments when a family's dynamics change.

At the time of the dog attack, Fontaine's boyfriend lived in the house and some of the dogs belonged to a family friend.
Coroner's counsel Chris Godwin said the jury's recommendations will be forwarded to the different ministries by the
province's chief coroner.

No criminal charges were laid in connection with the child's death. All of the dogs involved in the fatal mauling were subsequently destroyed.

B.C. Jury Makes Recommendations after Rottweilers Mauled and Killed Toddler | DogFlu.ca

[StephanieandToby]

All recomendations by the jury sound fair to me!!

Interesting statement by Stanley Coren, though....

[gingersmum]

I found the most interesting statement to be the fact that the mother was a convicted drug-dealer and some of the dogs were a"friends". Sounds to me like the dogs were there to guard-period. It's so sad that a child was killed, even sadder that more isn't reported about the whereabouts of the "adults" while this was happening. It's stories like this that make my blood boil, especially when I have to defend MY choice to have a Rotti in our house with 2 kids, to just about everyone who visits!

[rottielover2004]

always knew I was unsure of him, after watching his show, and reading good dog. Not to fond of him

[GypsysMom]

Its makes me sick to read this story, Accidents like that could have been prevented and it sickens me to think about it... What is wrong with parents these day.. My kids are older and I dont leave my dogs alone with them
what the hell were the adults thinking.. yeah probally to high to think anything and this poor boy had to loose his life damn that makes me so upset

[StephanieandToby]

Originally Posted by rottielover2004

always knew I was unsure of him, after watching his show, and reading good dog. Not to fond of him

He's a very "gentle" kind of man...and *usually* has some good things to say...he's against BYB's and thinks that was the downfall of the Pitbull...he's against BSL...so for him to make those statements about Rotties is a little out of character! Disappointing, actually......

Seems a little wishy-washy to me....I think Rottweilers are over his head. He's too soft and gooey.

[rottcrazed]

Seriously, if we were to look at ALL the Rottweilers in the world, how many of them live indoors with children? How many of those children die as a result of being attacked by their own dogs?

I would venture a guess the percentage is VERY VERY low.

To say they are not a breed for children is wrong. They are a breed who need strong leadership.

I agree, he is a little off on what he said, but I think in the context of the situation above, those dogs SHOULD NOT have been near any children at all. It was a highly preventable situation.

Kristi

[Lefty]

I live in the town where this happened.

I'll be polite about it but, I'm glad the drug dealing mother lost custody of her other children. Why would anyone leave a toddler unsupervised around any type of dog.

And I don't understand why they are only mentioning the 3 rottweilers, there were 4 dogs in involved. The 4th dog was a border collie.

[Gunsey'sMom]

I am not sure what to make of those statements by Coren either. I do know a lot of stuff in articles gets taken out of context though.

I will take it in the context of the situation like Kristi said.

[AngelBunny]

Originally Posted by Lefty

...I don't understand why they are only mentioning the 3 rottweilers, there were 4 dogs in involved. The 4th dog was a border collie.

This is an assumption on my part--the dog wasn't mentioned because the dog was a BC.

[Murphyab]

Just a side note: my friend and I both recall reading somewhere that labs are documented as having the highest bite incident rate of all breeds.

This is a tragic story no matter what the breed was.

[Lefty]

AngelBunny - no kidding, that probably is the reason why.

Murphyab - I have a friend who is a vet tech and she says the same thing about labs.

[moz205]

Regarding the lab, my friends lab bit her son's face and required well over 50 stitches. Neither one of my Rotties ever showed their teeth to my son. The older one would just go to "his place" on his own to get away for quiet time. He was already 4 years old when my son was born and never once did I feel my son was threatened.