The dog that seriously injured a four-year-old boy in the city of Schaffhausen on Sunday belongs to a former top athlete who is a suspect in a triple-murder case.
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Police in the northern Swiss city also confirmed newspaper reports that the 11-month-old Rottweiler had been in the care of the suspect’s mother since its owner’s detention.
The man is suspected of involvement with three others in the murder of a couple and their daughter in the town of Grenchen, at the beginning of June.
Schaffhausen police said there had been no previous reports of aggression by the dog.
The dog attack happened on Sunday as a father and his three children, aged four, ten and 19, were having a barbecue in a field.
Police said on Monday that the dog attacked the four-year-old. The 19-year-old tried to intervene and also received injuries.
The dog was put to sleep on Wednesday.
Under a new dog law in Schaffhausen, four breeds need a special permit. A police spokesman said Rottweilers were not on the list. All dog owners in the canton are obliged to take a course in looking after their pets.
Various cantons stepped up their legislation on dangerous dogs after three pit bulls killed a six-year-old child in canton Zurich in 2005. The Swiss parliament has been debating a federal law on the issue.
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