Family dog mauls 83-year-old former councillor to death in southwestern France
In the Landes department of southwestern France, a five-year-old Belgian Malinois killed its 83-year-old owner, a former local councillor, in an attack outside her home. An investigation has been opened into the exact circumstances.
Shock in a small village
On the evening of Tuesday, September 15, around 9 p.m., a tragedy unfolded in the commune of Callen (also spelled "Callan" in one source), located in the Landes department roughly 50 kilometers north of Mont-de-Marsan. The victim's son, in his sixties, returned home from a work meeting at the town hall to find the family dog — a five-year-old Belgian Malinois named Rocky — still attacking his 83-year-old mother. She was lying on the ground between the entrance and the gate.
According to reports, the son himself narrowly avoided being bitten while managing to shut the dog inside a van before calling emergency services. Two fire brigade teams, France's emergency medical service (SAMU) and gendarmes responded, but despite their efforts the woman died from her injuries.
A well-known and respected figure
The victim was well known in the local community: she had served two terms as a municipal councillor and had chaired the village's festival committee, a role she stepped down from earlier this year. Callen's mayor, Yann Bouffin, described the shock felt in the village: "There is total dismay here. We are all stunned. An elderly woman devoured by her own dog — it's such extreme violence." He said the family had raised the dog since it was a puppy and it had never previously shown any sign of aggression, calling the incident "completely irrational." As reported by Midi Libre, the mayor also told the outlet Ici Gascogne that the woman had been "torn apart."
Investigation underway
At the request of the Mont-de-Marsan public prosecutor's office, the dog was collected the following day and taken to a kennel — according to Sud Ouest, in the town of Garein. Prosecutors confirmed an investigation has been opened to establish the exact circumstances of death; an autopsy will help determine whether any third party was involved. The victim's son was briefly held in police custody, but investigators confirmed everything was in order regarding the dog's ownership. At this stage, authorities are favoring the theory of a domestic accident.
