An elderly woman is recovering at home in Brackenfell after she was allegedly attacked by her pet dog, said to be a corgi on Saturday night.
The control room of security company CMAX received a call at 22:20 from a woman needing assistance informing them that her 69-year-old neighbour had been attacked by her corgi.
“The patient had several bite wounds on her feet and arms that was bleeding profusely. She was hurt badly and paramedics battled to stop the bleeding,” says Carla Lourens from CMAX.
According to Lourens, the victim ran to her neighbour’s house seeking help after the attack.
“Panicked chaos ensued on the scene, but emergency services arrived minutes after our response officer to treat the woman. She was transported to a local hospital by ambulance.”
The circumstances of what led to the attack is not clear, but according to available information provided by a source the woman “made hand motions as if to wave away an insect” when the dog attacked.
When finding out the breed of the dog, emergency personnel were informed that it was a corgi belonging to the victim.
Angela Whitehead, former chair of the Cape Welsh Corgi Club in Cape Town and also a registered breeder in South Africa, was startled hearing of the attack, as the breed is known for being loving and companionable.
“Corgis are a loving and companionable breed. This is an odd incident as it is very unlikely for a corgi to attack anyone least of all its owner. It would die trying to defend its owner. They are extremely loving and loyal dogs if you treat them well, which is the case with any dog. They were originally bred as farm dogs, herding farm animals and even child-sitting farm children,” says Whitehead who has been involved with the breed for 42 years.
“There must have been something wrong with the dog, or something out of the ordinary happened. Corgis, as they get older develop Alzheimer’s and can get startled or frightened very easily,” she says.
Attempts by TygerBurger to contact the victim were unsuccessful.
