The attacks on toddlers and children by pets have increased in recent times, especially in Delhi and neighbouring regions. In the most recent case, a seven-year-old girl was allegedly injured in an attack by a pet Pitbull in Shahadra's Jagatpuri area. The police filed an FIR against the owner of the dog after a PCR call was received at 8:47 pm last night.
A police officer said the girl was playing outside her house on Friday evening when the dog attacked and dragged her before she was rescued by the locals. The girl was taken to a hospital by her mother and her condition was stated to be out of danger, the officer added.
Police recorded the statement of the girl's mother and scanned CCTV footage from the area to ascertain the sequence of the incident. A case under Indian Penal Code sections 289 (negligent act with respect to animal) and 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) has been registered against the dog's owner Shivanand Bhaskar and a probe has been initiated, police said.
Similar incidents of pets attacking children
Delhi has witnessed a couple of dog bite incidents in the last few weeks. Last week, a two-year-old girl was allegedly mauled to death by a group of stray dogs in Central Delhi's Tughlak Road area. On February 15, an autorickshaw driver was thrashed by a man and bitten multiple times by his dog for allegedly asking the owner to keep the pet on a leash.
On January 22, a two-year-old girl was allegedly attacked by a pet dog in northeast Delhi's Vishwas Nagar. A day before that, a seven-year-old boy was injured in northwest Delhi's Mahendra Park area after allegedly being attacked by a Pitbull.
In the Shahbad Dairy area, a seven-year-old girl was allegedly attacked by an American Bully when she was playing near her home. In another incident, a Pitbull allegedly snatched an 18-month-old child from her grandfather's lap and mauled her in Burari's Uttarakhand Colony.
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