Dogs attack 38 people, 59 pets

Dog owners in Wairarapa are avoiding prosecution when their animals attack, with no charges laid despite 97 recent attacks on people and animals.
Animal control statistics from Wairarapa's councils show that between July 1, 2009, and June 30 2010, more than 1300 complaints were received by the Masterton, Carterton and South Wairarapa councils, ranging from fouling and barking, to attacks on both animals and people.
The most serious of these were the 38 complaints about attacks on people, and 59 attacks on pets or stock animals.
Despite those numbers, there were no prosecutions of dog owners anywhere in the Wairarapa.
Carterton District Council senior animal control officer Robert Millar said the system was working despite the lack of prosecutions.
"It's about education.
"We like to educate people as much as possible.
"If we can avoid writing infringements and prosecuting, we think we're doing a pretty good job."
Carterton council recorded four attacks on people and 15 on pets and stock in the latest figures.
He said he looked at each attack on its merits, and punishments depended on a range of factors including the wishes of the victim, the severity of the attack, and the dog owner's history.
He said that having the dog in question destroyed was often punishment enough for the dog owners, although they could also hand out instant $200 fines.
His council destroyed five dogs and handed out 86 infringement notices in the latest reporting period.
Other statistics show that of the more than 10,600 dogs registered in Wairarapa, 115 of those are classified as menacing, with 84 in Masterton, 19 in Carterton, and 12 in South Wairarapa.
There are also six dogs classified as dangerous in Masterton, and one in Carterton.
Mr Millar said dogs classified as dangerous or menacing must be desexed, microchipped, and kept muzzled and on a leash when in public.
He said most were classified as being "dangerous by breed", with nearly all the Wairarapa dogs in that category being pit bull terriers.
He said there was little correlation between dangerous dogs and attacks on people or stock, with "any dog" capable of such an attack.