N.J. baby killed, parents injured in attack by family dog
A New Jersey baby was killed and the child’s parents were injured in an attack by the family’s dog at their home over the weekend.
The incident occurred shortly around 6:15 a.m. Saturday. Officers responded to the Woodbridge Township home for a report of an unresponsive baby, Middlesex County prosecutors and Woodbridge police said.
The mother and child “had sustained serious injuries from the dog,” and the infant was declared dead at the scene. The parents were taken to a hospital for treatment. They were released later that day.
Both parents tried to intervene when the dog mauled the child, whose age and gender have not been released by police. According to NJ.com, the child was a 3-month-old boy.
The names of the victims have not been publicized due to privacy concerns, and the parents have not been charged with a crime.
The dog — a pit bull — has been put down, according to Patch.
A spokeswoman for Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone told the outlet the investigation into the child’s death is ongoing.
No other details about the incident were made available.
An average of 43 people are killed each year by dog bites, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The majority of victims are children. Approximately 4.5 million people are bitten by dogs each year, according to the academic journal Injury Epidemiology.
