Dog Owners Walk Away Without Apologizing After Pet 'Severely' Bites Elderly Man Before Them

An elderly man was injured after being “severely” bitten by a dog during his daily walk in Timaru, New Zealand, on Sept. 22.

Speaking to Timaru Herald on Sunday, the unidentified daughter of the 75-year-old man said her father was on a daily walk when a man and woman with three leashed dogs approached him. Suddenly, one of the canines “severely” bit his hand. When the man asked the owners for their phone number, they refused to give it and walked away.

"My father, clearly in shock said to the owners, 'What is your phone number as this isn't acceptable'. Their response was, 'don't have a pen', as if they found it amusing,” the daughter said.

The victim, however, followed the couple for a while until they were picked up by a waiting vehicle. He then went to a nearby hospital where he was treated for his injuries.

"I am shocked and disgusted that there was no remorse shown and no apology given. Dog owners need to be responsible. He is an old man, he had done no one any harm, what if he was a child. Their attitude was disgraceful,” the daughter said.

The woman added that she was "truly at a loss to understand humanity" when her father "clearly distraught approached a vehicle, backing out of a drive in the vicinity of the attack. My father asked for help and the person chose to ignore an elderly man's plea, and drove off.”

Timaru District Council were investigating the incident following a complaint by the victim’s daughter.

"We have not as yet been able to identify the dogs, nor the owners, from the information that we were provided as they drove off following the attack. We are continuing to patrol the area to try and identify them and would welcome any further information that may help our investigations,” Stephen Doran, the council spokesman, said.