A mother got a suspended
sentence of 18 months in jail Thursday after one of the family's
two dogs savaged her 18-month-old son to death at Mascaluscia
near Catania in Sicily last summer.
The two Dogo Argentino dogs (Argentinian Mastiffs) will not
be put down, the judge decided, but instead sent to an animal
centre for "re-education".
The incident happened in August 2016, when one of the
mastiffs went for the toddler despite the mother's standing
beside him.
The mother, 34, was cleared of the charge of "abandoning a
minor".
The woman told prosecutors, according to her lawyer: "I had
the baby in my arms when one of the dogs, the only one free in
the garden, suddenly, without any apparent reason, attacked the
little one, trying to pull him away from me.
"I defended him, I fought, but it dragged me into the
garden. Then I managed to shut away the dog and I ran out of the
house screaming, asking for help with my son in my arms, but it
was all no use".
The mother was slightly injured but did not require hospital
treatment.
The toddler was 'coptered to hospital but was pronounced
dead on arrival.
The dogs were impounded by local authorities.
"Today is a tragic day for Mascalucia," Deputy Mayor Fabio
Cantarella said on Facebook.
The Dogo Argentino is a large, white, muscular dog that was
developed in Argentina primarily for the purpose of big-game
hunting, including wild boar.
Its breeders also wanted a dog that would exhibit steadfast
bravery and willingly protect its human companion to the death.
It was first bred in 1928, from the Cordoba Fighting Dog
along with a wide array of other breeds including the Great
Dane.
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