In July 2023, Rottweiler dog “Kim” squeezed through the fence in her owners’ garden in Wilfleinsdorf (Lower Austria). A family walked outside and was then attacked by the animal. At the time of the attack, the owner’s daughter was in charge of the animal. She is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday.
There is great tension in the court of Bruck an der Leitha (Lower Austria) prior to the hearing; this kind of media attention is not what we are used to in the small Lower Austrian court. It is about a tragic case involving the Rottweiler dog “Kim”, who was retired from the Kaisersteinbruch military dog squad and was taken in by a family in Wilfleinsdorf.
“We played with a ball in the garden”
The tragedy that took the life of a 52-year-old occurred there on July 26, 2023. The owner’s 21-year-old daughter took care of the dog at the time while her parents were on holiday with her sister. “We played with a small ball in the garden. She moved the ball back and forth with her paws. “Suddenly he slipped through the garden gate,” the young woman recalled during the trial. She must answer for ‘negligent homicide’ and ‘negligent bodily harm’ in court.
Because after the ball rolled out, the Rottweiler dog ran after the ball and suddenly pushed its way under the goal. “I ran into the house and took the key to the gate, which was locked, from the winter garden,” the defendant remembers.
Was the animal thrown with bats before the attack?
Outside, the dog approached a walking family – two women and five small children – and circled them twice. When the woman finally caught ‘Kim’, she grabbed the animal, which was not wearing a collar in the garden, by the folds of its neck and walked back to the property. “The blow came from behind,” the suspect said. According to the 21-year-old, the grandmother threw her shoes at the animal several times. Witnesses cannot confirm this during the trial. According to the suspect, ‘Kim’ turned around after the ‘snap-snap’ and sped away – he allegedly bit one of the children first. The grandmother of three then ran away and wanted to seek shelter in an unfinished building.
That’s when the suspect decided to grab the collar and leash. When she returned after about a minute, another woman was already trying to pull the dog away from the victim. There must have been terrible moments and a wild struggle. Other people, including the suspect’s grandfather, burst into the building’s shell. Five or six people eventually managed to overpower “Kim”. “We took her back to the kennel,” the 21-year-old recalls. The suspect’s grandfather also appears shocked as a witness: “The dog was always soft to cuddle. He never did anything. I can’t explain it.’
The attack ended fatally for the victim’s family. On October 6, 2023, the 52-year-old grandmother died of multi-organ failure as a result of the serious injuries, and two of her grandchildren also suffered serious bite wounds. “They are severely traumatized, one of the children also has to undergo surgery,” says the victim’s lawyer.
The dog is now at the club “Teufels Hunde”.
And what happened to “Kim”? The “Teufels Hunde” association in the Hartberg district, an animal shelter-like facility for dogs that no one wants to care for after serious biting incidents, took in the Rottweiler dog after the attack.
Judgment pending.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
