Auckland Dog Attacks Fall for First Time Since 2019/20, but Attacks on Children Rise

Auckland Council's Animal Management Annual Report for the 2025/26 financial year shows reported dog attacks across the region fell for the first time since 2019/20 — but attacks on children rose, Newstalk ZB reported on 15 October 2026.

Attacks: fewer overall, more on children

According to the report figures covered by Newstalk ZB:

• Council officers investigated 2,722 dog attacks, down 5% on the previous year.
• Attacks on adults fell by more than 12%, but 246 children aged 15 and under were attacked, up nearly 8%.
• 255 dogs were put down after attacks, compared with 290 the year before, and more than 700 dogs were seized and taken to council shelters after attacks.
• Officers responded to nearly 3,500 reports of aggressive behaviour, a 10% drop.
• Henderson-Massey overtook Manurewa as the local board area with the most reported attacks (297, up 18% from 251). Manurewa dropped from 308 to 268.

Roaming dogs and enforcement

• Roaming-dog reports fell to 12,592, down nearly 25% from 16,739. Roaming-dog reports and requests to collect strays made up more than 60% of calls to the council's animal management team.
• Fines for failing to control a dog jumped nearly 69%, from 2,064 to 3,486.
• Fines for failing to register a dog fell from 10,149 to 9,849.
• The council began 134 District Court prosecutions for serious dog control offences, the same number as the previous year.
• Officers carried out 13,672 patrols, inspections and checks, a 65.5% increase from 8,259.

Auckland Council's head of animal management, Elly Waitoa, said the figures showed early signs that efforts to reduce dog attacks were working, after the council significantly increased proactive patrols, community education, engagement programmes and compliance action against irresponsible owners over the past two years.

What this means for Auckland dog owners

The two biggest fine categories in the figures are failing to register a dog and failing to control one, and the council is doing far more proactive checks than two years ago. If your dog's registration is not current, our guide to dog registration in NZ and council dog registration checklist explain the steps.

Sources

• https://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/news/national/auckland-dog-attacks-fall-for-first-time-in-six-years-but-incidents-involving-children-rise/