A 6-week-old South Dakota baby died from injuries sustained following an attack by a family dog on Thursday, police said.
The dog attacked the baby boy late in the afternoon on the 900 block of Trojan Avenue in Hartford County, according to the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office.
The infant was airlifted to the hospital, but medical officials were unable to rescue the boy. He died at the hospital from his injuries.
Hartford Area Fire & Rescue arrived first on the scene. The dog breed was described by officials as a Belgian Malinois and was a family pet, KELO reported.
Animal control officials with the Sioux Falls Area Humane Society have since taken control of the dog. No information was released on what will happen with the animal.
A Belgian Malinois is a medium-to-large-sized dog. The breed is used by U.S. Secret Service to guard the grounds of the White House.
They are also often used for tasks such as detection of odors, finding explosives, narcotics, tracking humans for suspect apprehension in police work, and search and rescue missions.
The breed can be destructive or develop neurotic behaviors if not provided enough stimulation and exercise.
Research On Dog Bite Incidents
About 1,000 U.S. citizens require emergency care treatment for serious dog bite injuries on a daily basis, according to Dogsbite.org. Annually, about 9,500 citizens are hospitalized due to dog bite injuries.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, children are more likely than adults to be bitten by a dog and when they are the injuries can be more severe. Over half of dog bite injuries occur at home with dogs that are families with their victims.
“As the number of dogs in the home increases, so does the likelihood of being bitten. Adults with two or more dogs in the household are five times more likely to be bitten than those living without dogs at home,” the agency stated. “Among adults, men are more likely than women to be bitten by a dog.”
