An Auckland Councillor says she was bitten by a dog when it tried to attack her pet shih tzu on a footpath yesterday.
In a Facebook post, Maungakiekie-Tāmaki Ward Councillor Josephine Bartley said the incident occurred while she was walking home from a bus stop with her aunty and beloved dog, Milo.
It prompted her to write a letter to the Local Government Minister, calling for reforms to New Zealand's dog laws.
Bartley said she was walking past a driveway when "one of those big, aggro, muscly dogs" came "charging" through her towards Milo, "dragging a metal chain".
"Milo is normally reactive to other dogs, but he was minding his business sniffing a tree when this dog came at him."
She said she tried to wrestle the dog off Milo and, at some point, was bitten.
The dog's owner then arrived and got it off Milo as Bartley carried her pet away to check for any puncture wounds.
"I couldn't tell if it was my blood or Milo’s blood."
Bartley said that while their backs were turned, the man took off in his car with the dog, and she was unable to get any of his details.
"I took Milo straight to the vet. They said he was very lucky to come away with no visible wounds.
"He is on pain relief, and he is very shaken up."
She said she needed to go to A&E for a tetanus shot and an antibiotic prescription. Bartley said she had reported the incident to animal management.
'Beyond angry'
Bartley said the incident was "unacceptable" and made her "beyond angry".
"Milo must have some strong guardian angels because he’s been through a lot, and he’s such a small old dog, but it’s unacceptable that we can't walk in our own neighbourhood without him being attacked.
"I honestly thought he was gonna be killed by this dog, and I am angry that this man treated it like nothing that his dog could have killed my dog and just took off.
"I am beyond angry. I had no fear in facing that dog head-on when I saw it charging for Milo, and I wanted to stop it any way I could."
Bartley is known as a dog lover and frequently shares photos and videos with her pet pooch. She was among those who celebrated when pets were allowed on Auckland's buses.
The incident prompted her to write a letter to Local Government Minister Simon Watts, where she echoed her previous calls for changes to the Dog Control Act.
"What is it going to take for you and your Government to listen and to act, we have already outlined to you thoroughly and on several occasions, both myself in this role and the Council animal management team, about the urgent need to change this 30-year-old piece of legislation that isn’t fit for purpose anymore," she wrote.
"Children will continue to be mauled by dogs and have their ripped up faces in media articles, why doesn’t that affect you, why doesn’t that make you do something besides hide behind these gutless bureaucratic excuses."
She said she was "not taking political pot shots", and said she wrote the letter because she was "angry".
"Yes, we can say it’s the owners, they are irresponsible, but Minister, it is now at the point where you are irresponsible for not doing something about this."
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown said his thoughts were with Bartley, calling the incident "senseless", and reiterated calls for the Government to change the Dog Act.
"We need these changes to get on top of this issue, but the Government says there’s no time to get this through this parliamentary term which, frankly, is not good enough."
Minister vows to have a response to uncontrolled dogs 'shortly'
In a statement to 1News, Watts called the attacks "horriffic" and said he was "saddened" to hear about what happened to the councillor.
"No one should have to deal with this, and we need to ensure there are real consequences for irresponsible dog owners.
"Councils do have a range of powers under the Dog Control Act, and I know many are working hard to keep their communities safe. I expect councils to continue using the tools they have while we work together on the broader response.
"I acknowledge the role Government has to play, and I have been clear that we have are exploring options to address this. This is a serious issue, and I will be setting out our response to roaming and uncontrolled dogs very shortly."
Auckland Council has long called for changes to the way New Zealand deals with roaming and dangerous dogs.
After a woman was mauled to death in Northland, Robert Irvine, general manager of licensing and compliance, said the law was "no longer fit for purpose".
In 2025, the council called for legislation to improve the powers to detain a dog after an attack; reduce the number of dangerous and menacing dogs; improve controls on dangerous dogs; improve the prosecution process; provide councils the ability to set fencing standards and enforcement; and require mandatory reporting of attacks to Animal Management.
To crack down on irresponsible owners, the councils wanted laws that would enable councils to set an infringement schedule relevant to the issues in their area, improve enforcement powers against dog owners for non-payment of registration, and improve powers of Animal Management Officers.
It believed the dog population could be controlled by allowing councils to set a policy on mandatory desexing; the desexing of impounded dogs before they are released back to the owner; and reducing holding days in shelters from seven to five days.
$1.2 million for desexing
Together, the fund is enough to desex about 3000 dogs of an estimated 51,000 across Auckland and Northland that are not desexed. (Source: 1News)
On Wednesday, a $1.2 million combined fund was announced to de-sex dogs in Auckland and Northland.
The SPCA said the targeted desexing programme would prevent around 7500 puppies from being born in the first year alone. Over time, the impact could be even greater, with an estimated 45,000 fewer puppies across the lifetime of dogs in the programme.
Current estimates suggested 24,000 to 51,000 dogs in Auckland and Northland were not desexed.
“Working with our veterinary partners across Auckland and Northland, we will remove financial and access barriers that contribute to preventing owners from desexing their dogs," the SPCA said..
“Our focus is on prevention. Desexing is one of the most effective tools we have to keep communities safe and improve animal welfare.”
The programme – funded by close to $500,000 from the Lottery Minister's Discretionary Fund and $700,000 from the SPCA – was due to run from April 1 to March 21, 2027.
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