By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A 29-year-old owner has been fined without conviction after her dog escaped and mauled a 90-year-old pensioner gardening in his own front yard in Keysborough.
Maria Menelaou, 29, pleaded guilty at Dandenong Magistrates’ Court to her male American Staffordshire bull terrier Pacho being at large and causing a serious injury to the neighbour in Filer Court on 3 October.
Pacho, who was seized and impounded after the attack, will be released as a declared dangerous dog, the court heard.
Greater Dandenong Council prosecutor Rebecca Goddard told the court on 15 December that the mauling as one of the most serious that the council had seen in a “long time”.
After escaping from home, Pacho sniffed a power pole across the road and then ran towards the victim in his own driveway.
The victim was bitten multiple times to the back of his legs.
At the scene, Menelaou called for an ambulance. She helped the victim’s son deliver first aid as they waited about 45 minutes for paramedics.
The victim required surgery to the wounds on his calfs in Dandenong Hospital, including skin grafts from his thigh. He remained in hospital for 11 days.
“I do not know its breed but the dog was as big as a sheep,” he told council officers.
“It was grey and white and mean.”
In a statement to the court, the “extremely distressed” victim said a nurse was still applying new dressings to his leaking wounds every two days.
The attack had “robbed” the socially and physically active pensioner of his independence.
The once keen gardener and walker, who used to often chat over coffee with neighbours, now feared going outdoors.
He was confined to his house, unable to walk without assistance, unable to drive and unable to remain full-time carer of his wife.
Facing a long course of therapy ahead, he also had to rely on relatives to help with everyday tasks and medical costs from the attack.
“The trauma is keeping me awake at night.”
Menelaou’s lawyer conceded it was an “awful incident and an awful injury”.
A “deeply embarrassed and ashamed” Menelaou has a “very good relationship” with the victim’s family, regularly enquired with them since the attack and taken “full responsibility”.
The lawyer argued that something “unintentionally” may have caused the attack.
“It wasn’t a case that the dog went directly to (the victim) and started biting him.
“Something appeared to have occurred before the dog bit him when they first interacted.”
There was no record of Pacho attacking anyone previously or being aggressive in any way, he said.
Magistrate Greg Connellan said he rejected any inference that the victim brought on the attack himself.
“It attacked him. He was doing gardening in his front yard. He’s a man of 90,” Mr Connellan told the lawyer.
“It’s not unusual for a dog to have no adverse history and to do something shocking.”
Mr Connellan noted the “seriousness” of the injuries but also that Menelaou had acted as a responsible pet owner for 11 years without incident.
Pacho had attended a dog-obedience course well in advance of the attack, he noted. His escape was an “exceptional” event, and there was no previous cause to believe he would attack in this way.
More significantly was the way Menelaou responded to the unfolding situation in coming to the victim’s aid, Mr Connellan said.
Being a declared dangerous dog, Pacho would be under restrictions such as a mesh enclosure with concrete floor and signage, and a special collar.
An extra security door had been installed on the front verandah to prevent Pacho’s escape.
Menelaou was fined $1500, plus $3436 in pound costs and $851 compensation for the victim’s medical expenses.
The maximum fine applicable was about $8500.
