Baby killed and parents injured in apparent dog attack in New Jersey

An infant was killed and the child’s parents injured in an apparent dog attack in New Jersey over the weekend, authorities said.

Middlesex County prosecutors and Woodbridge police said a mother and child were found with “serious injuries” at an address in Woodbridge Township after officers responded to a report of an unresponsive baby believed to have been attacked by the family dog shortly before 6.30am on Saturday.

The baby was pronounced dead at the scene, while the mother and father were taken to a hospital for treatment. The names of the victims have not been released.

It is not clear what condition the parents are currently in.

Officials did not clarify the current status of the animal or the breed of the dog.

Under New Jersey law, any domestic animal that scratches or bites a human must be placed in a ten day quarantine at the owner’s expense.

At the end of the ten days, an animal control officer or health officer is required to evaluate the animal and determine if it is healthy.

If a dog is deemed to be vicious, it will be euthanized.

New Jersey law also states that the dog’s owner can be held liable for damages resulting from the bite.

Authorities described the investigation as “active and continuing” and asked anyone with information to call Woodbridge police and county prosecutors.

Each year, according to Forbes, about 4.5 million people are bitten by dogs in the United States, with 30 to 50 people killed due to dog bites. However, nearly 30 per cent of fatal dog attacks involve a victim between the ages of one and four.

Last June, an 11-month-old boy died in Michigan after he was attacked by the family dog while he playied in the backyard. Four months later, a four-year-old boy was killed by a dog in Detroit.

Meanwhile, in December, a six-year-old boy was mauled to death by two dogs who attacked him at a family friend’s house in Oregon.

The boy was preparing to head off to school from the house in Portland, which belonged to a friend of the victim’s grandmother, when two large Great Dane-mastiff mixes launched themselves onto the child, the Portland Police Bureau said.