A baby boy is dead following a dog attack on the weekend west of Edmonton, RCMP said Monday.
Emergency services including police and paramedics responded to reports of the attack Sunday morning in Entwistle, 105 kilometres west of Edmonton on Highway 16.
The boy was flown by air ambulance to Edmonton’s Stollery Children’s Hospital shortly afterwards.
RCMP said in a media release Monday the 14-day-old infant died “despite best efforts” by doctors.
Mounties confirmed there were three adults and the baby living in the home when the attack happened.
They would not confirm if the baby’s parents owned the dog or if the third adult did, but said the animal was surrendered to authorities.
Const. Julie-Ann Strilaiff said officers were looking at the health of the dog and not considering criminal charges.
The breed hadn’t been confirmed, but Strilaiff described it as a medium-sized dog.
“Once the dog has an examination, we can have more determination about what specific breed it is,” she said.
Strilaiff said the dog was set to be evaluated Tuesday by a veterinarian for things like rabies or inbreeding, and an application would possibly be submitted under the Dangerous Dogs Act to have it put down.
“We need a veterinarian to be able to assist us with being able to ensure that there wasn’t some other underlying cause,” she said.
She added that the newborn was the only child in the home, and the dog was the family pet.
“Obviously the community is pretty devastated and the family’s devastated,” Strilaiff said, adding victim services are available to work with the family.
“It’s just a heartbreaking situation for all.”
Dog attacks like this aren’t common, Strilaiff said.
Police continue to investigate the attack.
Allan Gamble, the mayor of Parkland County said in a statement to CTV News Edmonton he and his staff are “aware that the incident is under investigation” and that the county’s enforcement team “will be supporting these efforts.”
With files from Jack Farrell and Aaron Sousa, The Canadian Press
