A vet has called for certain dog breeds to be banned from suburbia after a vicious mauling that saw a toddler hospitalised in South Australia.
Two-year-old Alaruh Walker attacked in her Adelaide home when Joop, her family's 35kg pet South African Boerboel, attacked her at about 1.30pm on Monday.
She was rushed to hospital by paramedics with facial injuries.
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Vet and director of Parade Norwood Veterinary Clinic Derek McNair has since revealed he would support a ban of certain dog breeds from suburban areas in Australia.
"There are certain breeds which have a higher risk attached to them and are less suitable to be living in suburbia," he said, as per KidSpot.
"I think banning certain breeds is justified."
The vet added that caution should be exercised when any dog is kept in the same home as a family with small children.
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"No young child should be left unattended with any dog," he said.
The RSPCA added that children should never be left unsupervised with dogs, but disagreed with the call for a ban, as per news.com.au.
Alaruh’s neighbour, Anthony Dear, told the Adelaide Advertiser that he found the dog roaming in the street and wound up locking the dog in the garage.
"He wasn’t aggressive or anything, I don’t know why he snapped," the neighbour.
He noted that the toddler's father looked like he was ready to kill the dog after the incident.
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Joop has since been seized by the council.
South African Boerboels, as per PetsWebMD, are 'incredibly protective' and 'won’t stand down when challenged'.
"You shouldn’t take them to dog parks or allow them to roam around off-leash," the website reads.
Australia already has several dog breeds banned, all of which are considered too aggressive to be permitted by law.
They are also banned from importation or cross-breeding.
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According to PetTraveller, prohibited breeds include Pit Bull Terrier breeds, including American Pit Bull Terrier, the Dogo Argentino, the Fila Brasileiro, the Japanese Tosa, and the Perro de Presa Canario or Presa Canario.
South African Boerboels are not included on the prohibited list.
This isn't the first time a child has been mauled by a dog of the South African breed.
In 2018, a Bull Mastiff and a South African Boerboel attacked a 10-year-old girl in the outer-Melbourne suburb of Berwick.
In a statement released at the time, the City of Casey Council confirmed a South African Boerboel had been 'destroyed' with the owner's permission, the Daily Mail reported.
Rachel Lang