Francesco Pio and now Michele: two newborns killed by pit bulls in one month. “You need a licence”

There is an alarm of attacks by pit bulls after a close series of incidents, two of which were fatal. And we're back to talking about licenses for potentially dangerous breeds

BOLOGNA – Two terrible tragedies, with very similar contours, in less than a month. In the space of three weeks, two small children have been attacked and killed by pit bulls in Italy. Two tragically similar episodes, one which occurred in the South, in the province of Salerno, and one in the North, in the province of Vercelli. In between, at the beginning of May, a 10-year-old child was attacked by a pit bull in Milan, while five days ago a new attack took place in Sesto San Giovanni (in the Milan area), where a two-year-old girl was bitten and a half years. Fortunately, in this case there were no fatal injuries. A few days before Francesco Pio’s death at Eboli, an 83-year-old woman in Padua was attacked by her seven dogs (Amstaff and American Bully) and both of her arms had to be amputated. What is going on? Why are many parties calling for the creation of a ‘license’ for certain dog breeds including pit bulls?

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FRANCESCO PIO, 13 MONTHS

On April 22nd in Campolongo, not far from Eboli in the province of Salerno, Francesco Pio was killed: he was in the arms of his uncle, who together with the child’s mother was leaving the house. While passing through the garden, tragedy occurred: the two pit bulls (which belonged to a friend of the family) targeted little Francesco Pio, who was 13 months old. They made him fall and mauled him. The mother and uncle who tried to intervene to rescue the dog from the clutches of the dogs were also injured. The little boy’s family members were investigated, together with the owners of the dogs, who were then released from seizure after having passed the period of isolation and observation required by law to assess the danger of a dog involved in an attack.

MICHELE, 5 MONTHS

Not even a month later, yesterday 17 May, in Vercelli little 5-month-old Michele died after being bitten by his parents’ pitbull, a seven-year-old black dog named Nerone. The child, according to the testimonies collected, was in his grandmother’s arms at the time of the attack, which occurred in the courtyard. The child was crying. The dog suddenly pounced on the grandmother, causing her to fall, and then bit the five-month-old baby on the back of the head, killing him. Upon hearing the grandmother’s terrible screams, the neighbors intervened and hit the dog with bricks and a broom and made him go away. But the little one is not saved.

READ ALSO: Pitbulls, Rottweilers and other ‘aggressive’ dogs, Oipa-Codacons: “Licenses are needed”
READ ALSO: Child mauled by pitbull, when in Italy is a dog considered dangerous?

‘DANGEROUS’ DOGS

These two news episodes (which are added to other episodes involving adults and children, which often get news even if not of this magnitude) have aroused horror and apprehension. And above all they have reignited the debate on the topic of the ‘license’ for some dog breeds considered more complicated to manage than others and more potentially at risk: the pit bull, the rotweiler, the Dogo Argentino. But also the American bulldog, the Doberman, the Caucasian sheepdog, the Abruzzo Maremma sheepdog, the Cane Corso and the Czechoslovakian wolfdog.

THE ATTEMPT TO LISTA 20 YEARS AGO

For example, Codacons, and also Oipa, the International Organization for the Protection of Animals, are returning to ask for the establishment of a license, convinced that not all owners are able to digest these dogs. In Italy, a list of potentially dangerous breeds< /a> was established with an ordinance twenty years ago, in 2004, by the then Minister of Health Girolamo Sirchia for reasons of protecting public safety. The list, however, was subsequently abolished amid controversy because it was deemed discriminatory. The breeds indicated were 17. In this regard, Codacons recently recalled: “Having eliminated the list of 17 at-risk dog breeds introduced by the former minister Sirchia has effectively canceled any obligation for their owners, with negative consequences on the safety front. A list which, also in light of the Eboli tragedy, should be restored, considering that every year in Italy there are around 70 thousand attacks against humans by dogs, and that not all breeds are suitable for anyone”.