Owner of therapy alpaca which was mauled to death by a staffy

The devastated owner of a therapy alpaca that was mauled to death by a staffy claims the dog’s owner watched the horrific attack unfold and did nothing about it.

Nils Lantzke was walking two alpacas in Giralang in the Australian Capital Territory on Tuesday, when he claims they were attacked by a young man’s black staffy dog. 

Mr Lantzke said he asked the man to keep the dog away, but he allegedly refused and set the canine on the alpacas – while filming the savage attack with his phone.

The dog allegedly attacked Hercules (pictured right) before it attacked Mimosa (pictured left)

‘He attacked Hercules first, the white boy, and Hercules went into classic attack position on his hind legs, to attack the dog, but the dog left him and attacked Mimosa, a tiny little girl,’ Mr Lantzke told ABC News.  

He said the dog attack was so severe it, his friend – who was holding the Mimosa – was forced to let go and the animal bolted up the street with the dog on its tail.  

When Mr Lantzke and his friend eventually caught up with Mimosa near his home, they found the animal lying in the grass with a deep wound on her leg. 

The dog was nowhere to be found.

Both of Mimosa’s front legs were broken in the savage attack and her left leg had been bitten to the bone, which meant she needed to be euthanised, he said.  

Mr Lantzke said Hercules was clearly distraught by the sudden death of his female companion because he slept near the gate, waiting for her to come home.

He said he later tried to report the incident to police, but was allegedly told the ACT Government’s Domestic Animal Services handled matters such as these. 

A DAS spokesman told the publication the matter was currently being investigated.  

Both of Mimosa’s (pictured) front legs were broken in the savage attack and her left leg had been bitten to the bone, which meant she needed to be euthanised

Mr Lantzke said Hercules (pictured) was clearly distraught by the sudden death of his female companion because he slept near the gate, waiting for her to come home

The distraught owner said he will continue to provide the animals for therapy work in mental health units and hospices, but he hopes authorities can find the dog’s owner.

‘We are just here to help people. My alpacas and llamas, we have always done it just to create smiles, and we’ll keep on doing that,’ he said.

New South Wales alpaca breeder Rob Harborne told the publication alpaca-directed violent dog attacks are common, and he has lost eight of the animals.

He said whiles some dog breeds were more likely to attack alpacas, the problem was owners not keeping their dogs effectively restrained. 

‘I’ve had alpacas with their back legs broken because, as they’re running away, dogs follow them and smash their back legs,’ Mr Harborne said.