August 14, 2025 • 10 mins
Auckland Council's cracking down on dog owners in a bid to lower a surge in attacks.
It's made more than 611 prosecutions since 2020, targeting owners with dogs that have seriously injured people or other animals.
Nearly three thousand dog attacks and more than 15 thousand cases of roaming dogs have been reported in Auckland over the last financial year.
Jo Clough, Director of The Dog Safe Workplace, told Kerre Woodham New Zealand needs a mandatory dog bite reporting system, as without one the true cost and extent of injuries won’t be known.
She says that education is the best way to mitigate damage, ensuring that people who have no choice but to go into spaces with dogs have the processes to keep themselves safe.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Carrywood and Morning's podcast from News Talks.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
He'd be Auckland Council's cracking down on dog owners in
a bid to lower a surgeon attacks. Nearly three thousand
dog attacks have been reported in Auckland over the past
financial year, well up from the two thousand reported five
years ago. It's made more than six hundred and eleven
prosecutions since twenty twenty targeting owners with dogs that have
(00:32):
seriously injured people or other animals. Auckland councils so they
have zero tolerance for attacks as they can have significant
consequences for victims. Joe clov is the director at the
Dog Safe Workplace, and she joins me, now, very very
good morning to you.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Good morning, carry How are you today?
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Well, I'm very very well, thank you. This does seem
to go round in cycles. I was talking to a
caller earlier who said, you know, you have this enforcement
in zero tolerance and then it slacks off and back
comes the surgeon dog attacks, poor dog ownership.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
Yeah, I don't quite know what to say to that
because it's so absolutely true. But also the statistics that
you mentioned for three thousand incidents in Auckland. These are
only the ones that have been reported to Auckland Council.
I've got statistics dating back to two thousand and five
from ACC and in Auckland. Last year, in Auckland alone,
(01:33):
we had over nine thousand incidents. In New Zealand we
had twenty nine thousand, two hundred and thirty three dog
related incidents costing over thirty nine million dollars.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Shoot.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Yeah, so this the figures we get from council are
also not just dog on human. Their dog on dog,
dog and cat, dog on livestock. And when we talk
with ACC, these are only the ones that are involving
another human because of the medical costs. Until we start
actually getting the true numbers, and I really believe we
(02:11):
need to get a mandatory dog bite reporting system in
New Zealand, we are never going to know the true
extent of the injuries and the cost, the financial cost
to us the taxpayer as well. I'm a huge animal
lover and I've got dogs of my own and I
(02:32):
work with a lot of organizations and we've found that
education is the best way. I've got one client who's
gone from one hundred and five incidents in one year
down to six because their staff now know what to
look out for and what to avoid.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
So are these people who have to go door to
door and.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
We work multiple organizations. Yeah, so you have to go
on through property to do your job. So utility workers,
delivery personnel, couriers, Bare of Statistics, Department of Corrections here
and we do Australia as well for some of those.
And these people have no choice. They've got to go
onto the property. So if they don't recognize what the
(03:16):
dog is saying, or they don't have processes in place
to keep them safe, then they're going to have injuries occurring.
We also have a program for kids now it's free,
you can get on our website and download it. But
I'm part of a dog bite protection committee in the
UK and also in New Zealand and I am learning
(03:39):
something new all the time. So last month they released
this amazing video for children who own dogs and how
for them to engage and keep their dog happy. And
there's some incredible tips in it. But one I learned
was when you greet a strange dogs, you've asked permission,
the dog approaches you, you don't put your hand out,
(04:01):
You then pat the dog three times. On the shoulder
or the side and then stop, and if the dog
likes it, it will stay with you, but if it doesn't,
it'll move away. So there's all these really great little
tips that are really simple for kids to follow that
are going to make such a difference. But we all
need to be on the same page and we're not.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
So when you talked about education initially, and as you
were talking, I was thinking, you're talking about education of
dog owners, but you're actually talking about education of the
public to keep themselves safe from dogs.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
Yes, yes, I know it sounds kind of a backward
way of doing it, but we also I mean, our
programs are designed as well for members of the community.
So I will go into, say, for example, a preschool,
and I will have all the parents and the teachers
in there, and I'll be talking to them about how
to keep their children safe when they're out and about.
(04:54):
And for dog owners as well, you need to recognize
that this is what your dog is telling you. We
work with multiple councils around New Zealand training their dog
control officers, their field workers, their staff around the field,
and some of them are saying to me, I've been
doing the job thirty years and didn't know that.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
Yeah, And the thing is too you can't just make
assumptions about dog breeds or dog owners, you know. I've
got so many texts here from people who've had attacks
from much loved Jack Russell's labradors, who are supposed to
be the you know, the shmami shmoozy dogs, you know,
from staffy pit crosses, you know, like pack a dog
(05:39):
breed and it can bite, and it will bite.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
Absolutely you put any dog in any situation. I've spoken
to people, a gentleman in particular, who had his callest
hand and severed by a chihuahua when he was at work.
And because we hear so much in the media about
the big breeds, the pitbulls, the mastiffs, the shepherds, the rotties,
they cause more injuries when they bite, so they are
(06:07):
more reported. A lot of people forget the fact that
labradors are the most patient dog in the entire world.
They suffer so much at the hands of children, and
people go are They're great with kids. They just are
so much more tolerant than a Jack rustle, you know.
So there are certain things about breeds that you do know,
(06:29):
but on the whole every single dog will show you
the same behaviors. They'll do a stress you onwn, they'll pant,
they'll look away from you if they don't want to engage,
and every single dog does it. So if we look
at the dog from the tip of the tail to
the tip of the nose, we don't have a lot
more understanding than just going, oh, look, it's tails wagging.
(06:49):
He's pleased to see me, which we all know isn't
true now. And it's a really exciting thing to be
involved with educating people and helping them safe safe, and
also making the life better for the dogs.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
It really is. And that's how when it comes to
dogs rushing out of properties, I've had a number of
stories of those. There's not a lot you can do
about that.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Is there. No, there isn't. But there is means of
keeping yourself protected should this happen, but it depends on
what you're carrying with you. We always say, get something
between you and the dog. And I've heard the gentleman
earlier who was saying that his granddaughter had been attacked
and it took eighteen months before the dog was removed
(07:34):
from the property, which is abhorrent. It is absolutely shocking
that these kind of things are happening, but we have
to think about it when we're walking. So if you've
got kids with their little backpacks on and they know
they're walking past a property where there's an aggressive dog,
walk them on the other side of the road if
you can but get them to take the backpack off
(07:54):
their back. And it sounds really strange, but if you've
got something that you can have between you and the dog,
if the dog bites that, he's not biting you and
don't let go of. If you let go of that,
the dog will drop it and come back to you,
but it might give you that chance for someone to
come to your aid. If a kid's riding a bike,
(08:15):
put the bike between you and the dog. I've protected
myself with an umbrella, opened the umbrella and protected the
dog that was with me from a large dog that
wasn't aggressive, It just wanted to play. But I knew
that my friend's dog didn't particularly like big dogs and
could become potentially aggressive, and then you know it's going
(08:37):
to turn bad really quickly. So I had the umbrella open.
I used it like a bit of a force field,
so it was between me the little dog, I was
walking in the big dog. Yeah, it's so difficult and
there are so many different situations where things can occur.
I completely agree that we need to be doing more
(08:58):
about responsible pet ownership and one of the things I've
suggested to Auckland Council a few weeks ago was have
an amnesty for unregistered dogs, but not just an amnesty.
We don't get fined because you haven't registered your dog before,
but give them a year's free registration so they can
(09:18):
register their dog the Dog's college and then should something occur,
you can find that dog on a much easier but
with the free years registration it means we can track
those dogs down the track.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Really yeah, yeah, really good point, Joe. Thank you so much.
And I've had a look at the website as well
for those of you who aren'tterested. It's a great website,
a dog Safe workplace at dot com and you'll find
all the educational videos and tips, preschool downloads, primary downloads.
(09:53):
It's a really you know, even though it's a company,
it's a very publicly minded company. I think it's fair
to say dog safe workplace at dot com.
Speaker 1 (10:03):
For more from Kerrywood and Mornings listen to News Talks
at B from nine am weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Carrywood and Morning's podcast from News Talks.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
He'd be Auckland Council's cracking down on dog owners in
a bid to lower a surgeon attacks. Nearly three thousand
dog attacks have been reported in Auckland over the past
financial year, well up from the two thousand reported five
years ago. It's made more than six hundred and eleven
prosecutions since twenty twenty targeting owners with dogs that have
(00:32):
seriously injured people or other animals. Auckland councils so they
have zero tolerance for attacks as they can have significant
consequences for victims. Joe clov is the director at the
Dog Safe Workplace, and she joins me, now, very very
good morning to you.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Good morning, carry How are you today?
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Well, I'm very very well, thank you. This does seem
to go round in cycles. I was talking to a
caller earlier who said, you know, you have this enforcement
in zero tolerance and then it slacks off and back
comes the surgeon dog attacks, poor dog ownership.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
Yeah, I don't quite know what to say to that
because it's so absolutely true. But also the statistics that
you mentioned for three thousand incidents in Auckland. These are
only the ones that have been reported to Auckland Council.
I've got statistics dating back to two thousand and five
from ACC and in Auckland. Last year, in Auckland alone,
(01:33):
we had over nine thousand incidents. In New Zealand we
had twenty nine thousand, two hundred and thirty three dog
related incidents costing over thirty nine million dollars.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Shoot.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Yeah, so this the figures we get from council are
also not just dog on human. Their dog on dog,
dog and cat, dog on livestock. And when we talk
with ACC, these are only the ones that are involving
another human because of the medical costs. Until we start
actually getting the true numbers, and I really believe we
(02:11):
need to get a mandatory dog bite reporting system in
New Zealand, we are never going to know the true
extent of the injuries and the cost, the financial cost
to us the taxpayer as well. I'm a huge animal
lover and I've got dogs of my own and I
(02:32):
work with a lot of organizations and we've found that
education is the best way. I've got one client who's
gone from one hundred and five incidents in one year
down to six because their staff now know what to
look out for and what to avoid.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
So are these people who have to go door to
door and.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
We work multiple organizations. Yeah, so you have to go
on through property to do your job. So utility workers,
delivery personnel, couriers, Bare of Statistics, Department of Corrections here
and we do Australia as well for some of those.
And these people have no choice. They've got to go
onto the property. So if they don't recognize what the
(03:16):
dog is saying, or they don't have processes in place
to keep them safe, then they're going to have injuries occurring.
We also have a program for kids now it's free,
you can get on our website and download it. But
I'm part of a dog bite protection committee in the
UK and also in New Zealand and I am learning
(03:39):
something new all the time. So last month they released
this amazing video for children who own dogs and how
for them to engage and keep their dog happy. And
there's some incredible tips in it. But one I learned
was when you greet a strange dogs, you've asked permission,
the dog approaches you, you don't put your hand out,
(04:01):
You then pat the dog three times. On the shoulder
or the side and then stop, and if the dog
likes it, it will stay with you, but if it doesn't,
it'll move away. So there's all these really great little
tips that are really simple for kids to follow that
are going to make such a difference. But we all
need to be on the same page and we're not.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
So when you talked about education initially, and as you
were talking, I was thinking, you're talking about education of
dog owners, but you're actually talking about education of the
public to keep themselves safe from dogs.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
Yes, yes, I know it sounds kind of a backward
way of doing it, but we also I mean, our
programs are designed as well for members of the community.
So I will go into, say, for example, a preschool,
and I will have all the parents and the teachers
in there, and I'll be talking to them about how
to keep their children safe when they're out and about.
(04:54):
And for dog owners as well, you need to recognize
that this is what your dog is telling you. We
work with multiple councils around New Zealand training their dog
control officers, their field workers, their staff around the field,
and some of them are saying to me, I've been
doing the job thirty years and didn't know that.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
Yeah, And the thing is too you can't just make
assumptions about dog breeds or dog owners, you know. I've
got so many texts here from people who've had attacks
from much loved Jack Russell's labradors, who are supposed to
be the you know, the shmami shmoozy dogs, you know,
from staffy pit crosses, you know, like pack a dog
(05:39):
breed and it can bite, and it will bite.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
Absolutely you put any dog in any situation. I've spoken
to people, a gentleman in particular, who had his callest
hand and severed by a chihuahua when he was at work.
And because we hear so much in the media about
the big breeds, the pitbulls, the mastiffs, the shepherds, the rotties,
they cause more injuries when they bite, so they are
(06:07):
more reported. A lot of people forget the fact that
labradors are the most patient dog in the entire world.
They suffer so much at the hands of children, and
people go are They're great with kids. They just are
so much more tolerant than a Jack rustle, you know.
So there are certain things about breeds that you do know,
(06:29):
but on the whole every single dog will show you
the same behaviors. They'll do a stress you onwn, they'll pant,
they'll look away from you if they don't want to engage,
and every single dog does it. So if we look
at the dog from the tip of the tail to
the tip of the nose, we don't have a lot
more understanding than just going, oh, look, it's tails wagging.
(06:49):
He's pleased to see me, which we all know isn't
true now. And it's a really exciting thing to be
involved with educating people and helping them safe safe, and
also making the life better for the dogs.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
It really is. And that's how when it comes to
dogs rushing out of properties, I've had a number of
stories of those. There's not a lot you can do
about that.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Is there. No, there isn't. But there is means of
keeping yourself protected should this happen, but it depends on
what you're carrying with you. We always say, get something
between you and the dog. And I've heard the gentleman
earlier who was saying that his granddaughter had been attacked
and it took eighteen months before the dog was removed
(07:34):
from the property, which is abhorrent. It is absolutely shocking
that these kind of things are happening, but we have
to think about it when we're walking. So if you've
got kids with their little backpacks on and they know
they're walking past a property where there's an aggressive dog,
walk them on the other side of the road if
you can but get them to take the backpack off
(07:54):
their back. And it sounds really strange, but if you've
got something that you can have between you and the dog,
if the dog bites that, he's not biting you and
don't let go of. If you let go of that,
the dog will drop it and come back to you,
but it might give you that chance for someone to
come to your aid. If a kid's riding a bike,
(08:15):
put the bike between you and the dog. I've protected
myself with an umbrella, opened the umbrella and protected the
dog that was with me from a large dog that
wasn't aggressive, It just wanted to play. But I knew
that my friend's dog didn't particularly like big dogs and
could become potentially aggressive, and then you know it's going
(08:37):
to turn bad really quickly. So I had the umbrella open.
I used it like a bit of a force field,
so it was between me the little dog, I was
walking in the big dog. Yeah, it's so difficult and
there are so many different situations where things can occur.
I completely agree that we need to be doing more
(08:58):
about responsible pet ownership and one of the things I've
suggested to Auckland Council a few weeks ago was have
an amnesty for unregistered dogs, but not just an amnesty.
We don't get fined because you haven't registered your dog before,
but give them a year's free registration so they can
(09:18):
register their dog the Dog's college and then should something occur,
you can find that dog on a much easier but
with the free years registration it means we can track
those dogs down the track.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Really yeah, yeah, really good point, Joe. Thank you so much.
And I've had a look at the website as well
for those of you who aren'tterested. It's a great website,
a dog Safe workplace at dot com and you'll find
all the educational videos and tips, preschool downloads, primary downloads.
(09:53):
It's a really you know, even though it's a company,
it's a very publicly minded company. I think it's fair
to say dog safe workplace at dot com.
Speaker 1 (10:03):
For more from Kerrywood and Mornings listen to News Talks
at B from nine am weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio
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