A YOUNG child and woman in her 50s have been hospitalised following an “unbelievably savage” dog attack in East Clare.
In a statement to The Clare Echo, Gardaí confirmed that they and “emergency services responded to an incident involving a dog at O’Briensbridge, Co. Clare, on Saturday 8th August 2026, that occurred at approximately 10.55am”.
“A woman (aged in her 50’s) received injuries believed to be non-life-threatening at this time. The services of the Dog Warden were requested. Attempts were made to sedate the animal who had to be neutralised and removed from the scene by the Dog Warden”, they continued. Gardaí went on to state that no further information in relation to the incident is available at this time and that investigations into the attack are ongoing.
The Clare Echo understands that the sheepdog had been chained up before escaping and attacking the woman as well as the young boy. The dog also attacked members of An Garda Siochána before being brought under control.
Appearing on RTÉ’s News at One programme, Clare County Council Chief Dog Warden Frankie Coote stated that “I’m not exaggerating to say that I honestly believe if we hadn’t removed him on the day, he was capable of actually killing an older person or a child. He was an unbelievably more savage dog than I had seen in any breed”.
“I’d like to stress here that 99% of sheepdogs, they’re trained and they’re working, you know, and the worst you might get off them is a bite on the ankle as you run away, or they chase a bike. This was exceptional circumstances. A terrible scene to see, I haven’t seen anything like that before, where you come and a dog is a danger. But it’s removed now and it’s gone”, Coote continued.
The dog warden emphasised on the programme that any dog is capable of attack, adding that the young boy was released from hospital that evening with “a few stitches”, while the injuries received by the woman were more serious.
