Source: Radio New Zealand
Police at the scene of the fatal attack. RNZ
The dogs that killed a woman in Northland yesterday came onto a neighbour’s property recently and pack attacked their dog.
The Kaihu local says it was “really quite frightening” living near the animals.
Mihiata Te Rore, 62, was visiting a person she knew at a property in the small Northland town of Kaihu when she was attacked and killed on Tuesday.
Police say the three dogs involved lived at the property.
Te Rore is the third person to be killed by dogs in Northland in the past four years, sparking calls for more to be done by local and central government to deal with the growing problem.
Police have been at the taped-off home where Te Rore died on Tuesday.
A local – who RNZ has agreed not to name – said authorities were warned in the past year about issues with the dogs.
He has had his own experience with the four dogs he says live at the property.
“They’ve actually come onto my property and attacked my dog,” he said.
“They pack attacked him, all four have pack attacked my dog, and that was just over six months ago.”
Like many in the community, he was frightened.
“It is quite stressful because you don’t even know if you’re going to get attacked and for me, I’ve got to go out my drive to get to my letterbox, and you don’t know whether the dogs are around the corner,” the man said.
“It’s really quite frightening.”
‘Nothing had been done’
The man said Tuesday’s attack should never have happened.
“There were so many warnings before that happened and nothing had been done,” he said.
“I can’t believe that people are ringing dog control and yet nothing had been done.”
Statistics from the Kaipara District Council showed the number of dogs impounded by the council more than doubled over the four years from 2021 to 2025.
In the period from July 2022 to July 2025, there were 174 call-outs for dog attacks, but only one person was prosecuted in the same period.
RNZ asked the council to comment on these figures, but have not received a response.
The Kaipara District Council promoted cycle trails in the Kaihu area where Te Rore was killed.
Three years ago, Mike Wespel-Rose was biking on a track from Dargaville to Russell with his wife, when the pair were chased by dogs from a nearby property north of Whangārei.
“They were chasing us, and chasing us, it went on for quite a few minutes.”
“They jumped up on my wife’s bike […] we didn’t dare stop because God knows what we might’ve faced, so we just rode like crazy, very fearful about what might happen,” he said.
Wespel-Rose said the dog issue in the north is a symptom of wider problems with crime and poverty.
“It needs more resourcing doesn’t it, so that it can be dealt with more fully,” he said.
“It’s a tough one.”
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon described Te Rore’s death as unacceptable, and said the council needed to act.
“I would expect that within seven days that the Kiapara District Council is taking action and going after the dogs, and packs of dogs that are out there,” he said.
“Just imagine being a mum with a young baby, or young toddlers, and the anxiety that that causes.”
Push to reform laws ignored
However, Auckland Council’s Animal Management said its push for the government to reform dog control laws over the past year had fallen on deaf ears.
Elly Waitoa from the council’s animal management department said she was shocked that as recently as Tuesday morning, the government had told them they were not considering changes to the dog control act.
Meanwhile, police have said they want to hear from anyone in the Kaihu community who has had issues with dogs roaming in the area.
Detective Senior Sergeant Shane Pilmer said the dogs involved were now with Animal Management.
“This was a very upsetting and tragic event in which a woman has suffered unsurvivable injuries,” he said.
“I know the community will have a lot of questions; our investigation is still in the early stages and our focus is on establishing all the facts in this case.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
