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Investigatesoff leash<< WARNING: This article contains graphic images of the effects of dog bites >>
WHEN 12 YEAR-OLD Darryl Brady-Graham was savagely attacked by a dog on the restricted breeds list, his mum Deborah hoped its owner would face the full force of the law.
But in April – two-and-a-half years after the schoolboy received emergency surgery to treat the life-changing injuries to his face – the dangerous dog’s owner was handed a fine.
“The judge issued a €950 fine – tell me that is good enough for a dog that actually could have killed my son,” the north Dublin woman told Noteworthy.
“I walked out of that court that day and I felt sick. People get more of a fine for driving down a bus lane.”
This month marked three years from the terrifying attack which took place when Darryl was playing football in a park close to his Clonsilla home.
He was set upon by a staffie/pitbull type dog after it broke free from a 14 year-old boy who had been walking the pet through the pitch.
The unmuzzled dog tore at Darryl’s face and also his arm, with the mauling so severe that the 12 year-old required 160 stitches – most to his face – and over four hours of surgery at Dublin’s Temple Street Children’s Hospital. The dog was later destroyed.
Under The Control of Dogs Regulations 1998, restricted dogs – including strains and crosses – must be kept on a short strong leash, in the control of someone over the age of 16 and muzzled in a public place.
Those found in breach of the strict rules face financial penalties, imprisonment, as well as seizure and destruction of the dog.
However, the Brady-Graham family’s horrific ordeal shows that in even in the most serious of cases, enforcement of the regulations leaves a lot to be desired.
“I’m just blessed that he is still alive, that dog could have taken my son from me and to issue out that fine, I just feel was way too lenient,” Brady-Graham said.
“It makes me angry that the fact that the laws are actually crap when it comes to clamping down on people.”
Since the attack on young Darryl in December 2020, reports of dog attacks in Ireland have soared.
Earlier this year, the Department of of Rural and Community Development revealed that more than 300 people were injured due to a dog attack in 2022.
It was the first time statistics on aggressive behaviour and dog attacks on people reported to local authorities have been compiled.
An investigation by Noteworthy has found that the concerning rise in reports to councils has continued throughout 2023, with data showing that in some areas attacks have more than doubled.
From January to November this year, Dublin City Council received 63 reports of dogs attacking people, up from just nine reports for the entire year previous.
Reports to Wicklow County Council also saw a significant increase, with 26 people reporting they had been attacked by dogs in the 11 months of this year, compared to just six in 2022.
Dog attack incidents doubled in Cavan from four to eight, while 2023 reports to Offaly council increased six-fold, from one dog attack last year to six reports.
Of the 23 councils able to provide data, 60% reported an increase in dogs attacking people from the previous year.
There was also a significant rise in reports of aggressive dog behaviour in some council areas, with Fingal County Council receiving 88 complaints from members of the public in 2023 – up from 29 last year.
Figures provided by Louth, Tipperary, Galway City, Leitrim and Offaly councils also showed an increase in these type of reports.
In total, councils recorded 366 dog-on-dog attacks, or attacks on other animals, which occurred between January to November this year.
Noteworthy also asked councils if it held data on the breeds involved in attacks on people, animals and those reported for aggressive behaviour.
Of the nine councils able to provide the information, eight recorded collie or sheepdog breeds as being regularly reported to council officers for either attacks or aggressive behaviour in 2023.
German shepherds – which are on the restricted breed list – were the second most commonly reported breed involved in recorded incidents.
However, a large number reported were not on the official restricted dogs list, including small dogs such as Bichon Frises.
Nanci Creedon, a dog behaviourist who works throughout Ireland and the UK, believes that the problem does not lie with the breeds, but with the increasing numbers of dogs and their owner’s lack of experience.
“I do think that the number of dogs that we have amplifies what’s going on… we have a whole population of animal lovers who do not understand how dogs work,” she told Noteworthy.
So, because we have more dog owners and more dogs, and because the general public don’t really have a proper understanding about how dogs function.
“And in some situations that can be a recipe for disaster, especially when children and dogs are involved.”
Creedon, who works regularly with dogs involved in biting and aggressive behaviour, said ideally, those wishing to own a dog should have to sit a driving theory type test before taking on the commitment.
“I believe that with just the smallest bit of time and effort put into watching webinars and reading the manual, it would change how people look at dogs very, very quickly,” she said.
“And with that change will come a better understanding and with a better understanding will come more bite prevention.
“I believe that the issue with dog lovers – myself included – don’t fully understand how dogs learn, their thinking, and how they form associations.
“And then the increase in volume of pet dogs across Ireland is inevitable to increase the number of bites which again, almost always happens out of miscommunication and misunderstanding from the human side.”
Although some of the blame for the rising dog bites and attacks has been placed on so-called ‘pandemic puppies’ – dogs purchased during lockdown – a study published this week shows incidents have been climbing prior to 2020.
Research carried out by the Department of Agriculture, University of Limerick (UL) and National Health Intelligence Unit shows hospital admissions for dog bites soared by more than 50% in a decade.
Of the 3,158 patients receiving treatment between 2012 and 2021, over 1,200 were children bitten by dogs.
The study, published in December’s Irish Medical Journal, emphasised the importance of improving dog control legislation and enforcement and of developing effective policies to reduce risk and protect the public, its authors said.
The findings come less than a month after a raft of stricter dog control regulations were announced by Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys.
Speaking to Noteworthy, Dr Páraic Ó Súilleabháin, a co-author of the dog bite study, said he believed that in its current form, he did not believe the stricter regulations are enough to tackle the rising cases.
“Although I am aware that a number of working groups are addressing various aspects of this legislation,” he said.
From my view more broadly, people thinking that dog bite risk is related to what a dog looks like is a real problem.
“Government policy then reinforcing that with regulations compounds the problem.”
Ó Súilleabháin said this “filters down to how people perceive risk” from dogs and as a result how they interact with all dogs day-to-day.
It can also lead to the stereotyping of different breeds of dogs – those considered friendly or dangerous, he said. “This has long been a major concern of international organisations, such as the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe and so many others.”
The UL professor said the problem is less “about a specific group of dogs, and more about all dogs”.
Ó Súilleabháin suggested if restrictions on specific dog breeds were removed and replaced with the possibility of restrictions on any dog – which could be removed following training – it could help the problem.
He added: “(If) dog control is given enough resources for them to enforce restrictions, and evidence-based dog training provided freely in social disadvantaged areas, the rate of dog bite hospitalisations would come down.”
“This isn’t a controversial opinion that me or others have plucked from thin air, it’s literally the conclusions of all reputable international organisations.”
A spate of serious maulings – including that on nine-year-old Wexford boy Alejandro Mizsan in November 2022 – spurred the government on to tighten dog regulations.
While the move has been welcomed by many, some victims – whose lives have been forever changed as a result of a dog attack – are reluctant to believe it will make a change.
Jackie* was attacked by a pitbull type dog close to her south Dublin home in July 2022. She had been walking her own dog when the animal set upon her pet, before turning its attention to her.
“The dog ripped my ankle apart and then got me on the ground,” she told Noteworthy. “It then went for my left calf and it just sank its teeth in. Luckily enough, my boyfriend was home… and he heard a commotion on the street.”
Jackie’s boyfriend rushed out and was able to rescue her and their dog, but only after prying open the jaws of the attacking dog from his girlfriend’s leg.
Her injuries were so serious, she had to be attended to by both the fire brigade and ambulance before being rushed to hospital for emergency surgery.
After spending 3 days in hospital, Jackie was discharged – but her nightmare was only just beginning.
“At home my left leg began to swell up and I went back to hospital where I at sat there for another 24 hours while they figured out what’s wrong with me.
They couldn’t figure it if I had a terrible infection or blood clot, and it turned out I had both.
Jackie was admitted to hospital for a further three weeks, where she constantly feared she would die. Eighteen months on, she is still suffering the physical and mental impact of the attack.
“I’m left with permanent nerve damage and significant physical scarring,” she said. “I have an upcoming nerve surgery in early 2024 and potentially reconstructive aesthetic surgery thereafter to rebuild my calf.
“Before this, I was fit and healthy, I would run, I would box, and now I don’t do any of that anymore because I have been so scared for the last 18 months to leave the house.”
The psychological impact of the attack led to Jackie being placed on antidepressant medication. She has also received counselling. Sadly, the 38 year-old felt she had no option but to move away from the area due to the constant triggers and reminders of the attack.
I’ve gone through hell, there were several points where I had reasonable cause to think I would die.
“I’ve spent thousands of euros on prescriptions, specialists, physiotherapy and counselling and will end up spending even more on surgery and there’s basically no tangible legal recourse as the dog owner has no insurance.”
The dog involved in the attack on Jackie was seized and later destroyed and the owner is facing criminal proceedings currently going through the courts. However, Jackie said little can repair the life-changing damage the attack caused.
“I’m angry at the state of legislation with respect to these attacks,” she said. “I have physical scars and I’m seriously out of pocket, but more significant to me is that
“I’m left with all the trauma and consequences for what happened to me.
“The lack of action against the dog owner just compounds the emotional trauma – they got to go back to their everyday life with no repercussions but I’ll have to cope with this for the rest of my life and that is simply not reflected in legislation.
“All of the burden is on the victims and that’s simply not right.”
In the course of our Off Leash investigation, Noteworthy found that in some cases similar serious dog attacks involving people and their pets, did not result in action being taken against the dog’s owner.
In August, Amelia*, a software developer from Stillorgan, was walking her Ragdoll cat Lockie on a leash close to the apartment she shares with her boyfriend.
As she walked, her cat was set upon by a boxer dog before it attacked her. The animal – which was in the control of a young girl – mauled Amelia’s arm and leg.
After managing to break free and hide in a nearby garden, Amelia had to seek hospital treatment for deep puncture wounds. She reported the incident to both gardaí and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, but she received a mixed response to the frightening attack.
Amelia told Noteworthy: “The dog warden told me that it is a matter for the garda and then the garda told me it is a matter for the council.”
Almost four months later, Amelia says no action has been taken against the dog owners, despite the seriousness of the attack. Meanwhile, she remains afraid to walk outside her home for fear off being attacked again.
It is disheartening to realise that if such an attack happened again, the perpetrators can walk free because the guards don’t seem to have time.
She also said that “the dog can walk free because the dog wardens are closed during weekends which is when the attack happened”.
“It is ridiculous that it is unclear, even for the governmental agencies, who to report such incidents to”. She added that the gardaí say dog wardens, dog wardens say gardaí and “the HSE says both”.
“Yet, we still haven’t been fully heard or helped, and meanwhile I am terrified of going to work in the mornings as I have to pass the place where the dog lives.”
When approached about Amelia’s cases, a Dún Laughaire-Rathdown County Council spokesperson said: “We do not comment on individual cases, however, a dog attack on a person is a matter for An Garda Síochána and should be reported directly to them.
“In the event that an attack is also reported to our offices, our dog warden will carry out a licence check in the area and remind all dog owners of their responsibilities under the Control of Dogs Act.”
A gardaí spokesperson said it was continuing to investigate the incident.
*Names have been changed.
Read more articles in this series >>
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This was originally published by Noteworthy, the investigative unit of The Journal, now known as The Journal Investigates.
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Walking through Dublin city today, came across three different people, two teenagers, all walking their American Pitbull terriers, none of them muzzled. I like dogs, I have two, but no way this breed should be without a muzzle in public, I doubt anyone could control one if it chose to attack. Legislation is all well and good but it’s of no use if it’s not enforced.
@Eddie Garvey: Dogs dogs, dogs, everywhere have become a pest. Can’t get a full night’s sleep without someone’s darling mut yapping at all hours. Not to mention fouling streets. I actually like animals, but it has gotten out of hand. It seems people prefer to have a dog than a child.
@Eddie Garvey: did you report it?
@brian o’leary: and when you report it , exaggerate, say the animal was aggressive towards children.
@Sean Sean: report it, if not hutup
A dog attacks it is an assault on the victim so they owner of the dog is solely responsible for controlling the dog and for keeping a dangerous type of dog,
So the owner should be charged with assault,
I say.
@Edward O’T.: I’ve said it before I’ll say it again, we can’t lock people up for assaulting people how on earth are we gonna be able to do it when a dog is involved??
@Martin Mongan: point taken,
Hardly surprising about the Council housing stats.
Another example of the consequences free lifestyle of the professional work shy.
If you have a large dog, surely you can afford to pay for your free house?
A ‘dog warden’ has a near fatal dog mauling incident reported to them yet they refer the victim to the guards? Thats Ireland in a nutshell, introduce legislation with zero enforcement.
@SOCOMJON: couldn’t agree more. Who and what is a dog warden and what power do they have is the questions we should be asking. The guards have enough on their plate.
Certain dogs (xl bullys, putbulls and the likes) need to be controlled muzzled and harnessed by a responsible dog owner. In Ireland they are generally a fashion item for tracksuit covered walking rodents
No enforcement I see Pitbull dogs all the time off lead and no muzzle
@Shane Freeney: do you report it?
I would prefer to see restrictions on welfare tourists or an outright ban
@Murray peter: Didn’t realise that there was an ‘either or’ choice at play, where we could all pick a personal issue. I guess deceitful, multi-account trolls always have a twisted view.
@Murray peter: we have our own welfare sponges here, why not mention them? Plenty of them aligned with right wing organisations . Of no benefit to society whatsoever!
@Murray peter: I’d prefer to see restriction on dole scroungers
@Murray peter: Your country is planning on sending them to Rwanda, does that not make you happy?
The article as a whole seems to be a considered and balanced view to be fair.
I did read the linked Irish Medical Journal study and for that one I could not help being left with the feeling that it set out to prove a specific view and then came to the conclusions they wanted to come to.
Having a dog owners test is not a bad idea, and to be honest I would not mind paying for & taking a test etc. If it meant that some of the money collected was used for dog welfare and we ended up with registered & better (?) owners across the board. Having said I can’t see it working unless the whole thing was very (very!) strictly enforced (I would actually say it would need to go as far as taking the dogs off anyone who are stopped with a dog without having the test) Harsh maybe, but I can’t see it working unless it had real consequences.
I have 2 dogs myself (one is on the restricted list) so I am kind of biased.
@Tom Brennan: Agreed , but as you say ” may not work without real consequences ” and this is where we as a country fall down. People write ,if a dog attacks a person or causes damages the owner should be held responsible. Correct , the same way ,in my opinion, if a teenager attacks a person or causes damages the owners(parents) should be held responsible. Again consequences for the action but in this country we know this does not happen.
Some years ago, my neighbour complained about that one one of my dogs(both died of old age at 17 yo) attacked him and bit his leg. GDPR was just new at the time and my security cameras recorded the incident, when he had interrupted(broke) my private fencing and my dogs responded. It went to court and he was found guilty of trespass, animal cruelty and got a lump of probation for his effort. Doesn’t happen too often but prior to gdpr, real footage was accepted on court. How u got it wasn’t a consideration.
@Jon Doesn’t: I think you’re blowing gdpr out of proportion, I’ve never heard of footage not being admissible due to gdpr. If that was the case bank robbers wouldn’t need balaclavas
Dogs, and getting rid of banned breeds is a problem that various Authorities are pussyfooting around without taking firm action. When there is a law it should be invoked and the perpetrators should be brought to book, NO EXCUSES ! ! !
I carry a concealed machete when out walking, as I have been attacked by off leash dogs in coilte woods in the past. Next time I’ll be able to defend myself properly.
Dog owners need to cop on. The amount of plastic bags full of canine faeces festooning the trees like Christmas ornaments from hell is disgusting. The sheer entitlement of these folks is breathtaking.
As a dog owner, I agree that there should be restrictions. But maybe the restrictions should be the humans?? A dog will never be aggressive unless a human had shown him how!! Such a sad story for the boy and his family, but maybe question not the dog but the people who were responsible for the dog the time of the attack!!!
@Rebecca McCormack: same logic the rifle association in the States uses
@Rebecca McCormack: I was wondering how long before a Dr Dolittle would show up. Do us all a favour and “Muzzle the Mutt”. Far simpler than pretending to be able to psycho analyse a canine.
@GVR: unless a rifle has a mind of its own and can be trained behaviour wise your analogy is absolutely ridiculous. A dog could attack you tomorrow, be put down, and the owner can just go out and buy a new dog and the process starts again. I get your a miserable person who flys into a fit of rage over animals but trying to compare an inanimate object to a living thing is one of the worst takes I’ve ever heard in my life hahaha
Muzzle all dogs in public.
Hold owners fully criminally liable for the actions of their pets.
Enforce the above with immediate euthanasia of the animal for non compliance.
No more dog bites.
Ireland, all law, no order.
@Paul: muzzle you in public more like
The justice system in Ireland is a joke.
Are they waiting for someone to be killed?
Just back from my walk very shaken. A woman passed me with an Alsatian which lunged at me and tried to bite me. It had no muzzle. I am small and didn’t even look at it, so was no threat. What was most upsetting, she didn’t even correct the dog or apologise to me. It was really terrifying. The guards said if they see her they will explain the legislation to her even though I told them the estate where she lives and there’s only one of those dogs in that estate. It’s obvious they won’t even call round there to make sure it’s muzzled in future.
@Saffron Willetts: do you honestly think the Gardai have nothing better to do thendriving around an estate looking for a dog that may or may not be there based of something that may or may not have happened? I’m not saying it didn’t btw, but they have no idea if it’s true or not.
@Martin Mongan: it’s Kenmare so no they don’t actually
As a person who had to stop a dog attacking my girlfriend in Liverpool, this pitbull dragging its 13 year old along like he was water skiing is testament that fines and jailtime need to be meted out to these lowlives who treat these animals as some weapon or status. On this issue I’m fully on Jihadi with these people and their treatment of these beautiful animals.
Law has no bite to really punish dog owners. People just gave to lick their wounds.
If I had a euro for every time somebody’s drooling, ugly, hound has come rushing aggressively towards me and I’ve been told “He’s only a puppy! ” …..
I suppose that’s their defence when it gives a child life changing injuries?
@IMHO: and of those times how many times did they actually attack you? Because you being afraid of a dog doesn’t mean it’s so
I have 2 Albanians
@Boris Blank: How much rent are they paying, is it cash in hand?
@Heywood Jablome: convertible marks
Looking forward to a weak kneejerk reaction on this bombshell piece of journalism…
I don’t agree at all with banned breeds or restrictions on certain breeds, because it truly is how you raise a dog. I have a big dog, not banned or restricted but he gets a lot of negative attention for simply walking past people. He is very friendly, has never attacked or lunged at anyone, he does bark if people get close but his tail is wagging, he’s just excited. BUT if my dog, or any dog for that matter, attacks someone, the dog should be put down, immediately and the owner should be banned from owning a dog. And I say this truly as a dog lover. Dogs are not born aggressive or bad, idiot humans make them that way.
On a different thread I posted my opinion that all dogs and cats should be shot on sight. It was taken down. I am still of that opinion but would qualify it by saying dogs not on leads.
@Pato:
Aww, those that mean my reply to that suggestion is gone too?
I can hear the cliché sinister music playing.
Abuse created Abuse until
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