Animal attacks -- a red herring of child abuse?

Abstract

Extracted from text ... March 2006, Vol. 96, No. 3 SAMJ SAMJ FORUM 184 Injuries sustained as a result of attacks by domestic animals, particularly canines, are occasionally encountered at the Red Cross Children's Hospital Trauma Unit in Cape Town. Less than 1% of admissions are directly attributable to animal attacks. Animal attacks causing lethal injuries are very rare and should be assessed carefully. We recently dealt with two fatalities attributed to animal attacks. Case 1 A 2-year-old child was seen at a peripheral hospital after an alleged attack by a pregnant goat in a township. According to the history of the caregiver the ..