Horse attacked

By Tania Martin
THE Shire of Cardinia is seeking help to identify two dogs after a attack on a horse.
An Avonsleigh family ran to the aid of their 30-year-old stallion, Josh, as two dogs attacked him on Christmas Day, ripping the skin and muscle away from his rump.
Sue Pooles said her family’s dogs alerted her to the attack shortly after 8.15pm and she ran to the horse’s aid.
She said one of the dogs was the size of a Great Dane and was black with white specks running through its hair. The other dog looked like a Blue Heeler with black and brown hair.
Mrs Pooles said the smaller dog was barking in Josh’s face while the other jumped up and attacked him from behind.
“He (Josh) didn’t have a rug on that night which would have protected him. But Josh was kicking out with his hind legs at the dogs which didn’t deter them,” she said.
Shire local laws manager Alan Giachin said although there was no report of the dogs harming residents, people should still be wary of approaching dogs that are not accompanied by their owners.
“The important thing is not to approach any aggressive dogs or try to catch them. People who see these dogs involved in the horse attack should contact council,” he said.
Mr Giachin said there had been no positive identification of the two dogs and council officers were continuing investigations into finding the owners.
He said public help was still needed to identify them.
The Pooles family have 13 horses and a foal, and Mrs Pooles is now concerned about protecting the foal from a repeat attack.
“We are petrified that they will bring the foal down if nothing is done. I have heard of foals being attacked by dogs, but I have never heard of a horse,” she said.
After the attack, Mrs Pooles took photographs of Josh’s mauled rump and distributed 80 flyers to neighbouring properties as well as to Ritchies IGA in Emerald and Riteway Supermarket.
Mr Giachin said if the dogs were positively identified, council officers could seize them, pending a court case where the owner could face a number of charges. Anyone who may have seen the dogs should phone the council on 5945 4222.