Retired vet found savaged to death in garden ‘took vicious Bernese dogs and dachshund home just weeks before he died’
A RETIRED vet found dead in his garden after being mauled to death by “vicious” dogs had taken the mutts in just weeks before his death.
Antony Harrington, 77, was attacked by a pack of seven Bernese mountain dogs and dachshunds at his home in Little Packington, Warwickshire.
The widower died horrifically on November 25 last year after a suspected cardiac arrest and multiple bite wounds.
He was pronounced dead at the grim scene, as his clothes lay torn and scattered around the garden.
A source previously told The Sun: “Tony always loved animals and had a huge black terrier of his own.
“The dogs, which police seized, included his own pet and six which were owned by a friend living with Tony at the time.
“What happened is horrific — no one knows why the dogs attacked him.
“He was found in the garden and bits of his clothes had been scattered around the grass.
“His family are distraught and hope the investigation can help them understand what happened.”
As the horror unfolded, a woman, 75, ran into a neighbour’s house screaming “help, Tony’s dead”, as reported by the MailOnline.
It was revealed her savage pack of dogs had moved in with the retired vet just weeks prior to the gruesome attack.
Dangerous Dogs Act explained
After eleven horrific attacks in 1991, Home Secretary Kenneth Baker promised “to rid the country of the menace of these fighting dogs” by introducing the Dangerous Dogs Act.
The law is often considered controversial as it focuses on a dog’s breed or looks instead of an individual dog’s behaviour, and fails to stem the rise of dog attacks.
According to the RSPCA, over a third of the people killed by dogs since the act was brought in were attacked by legal breeds
She had been a friend of Tony’s and gone to live with him temporarily to help him after a knee operation.
The neighbour who was asked for assistance said the traumatic scene was “absolutely awful”.
“By the time I arrived, police, paramedics and an air ambulance were there but he was covered in bites and it was obvious he was dead,” she recalled.
“It was absolutely awful and not something you can unsee.”
The vicious attack had left some of the victim’s clothes “scattered across the garden,” she added.
She described the hysterical women being in a “terrible state” after making the distressing discovery.
The villager added: “She had been out and came home in the evening to find Tony in the garden but thought he might have been attacked in the morning.”
According to the witness, the dangerous dogs had been taken away by police and placed in kennels while investigations continued.
At the time a woman, 75, was arrested on suspicion of owning a dog dangerously out of control and bailed.
A Warwickshire Police spokesman said “At 6.04pm on November 25 2023, paramedics contacted police to inform them of a man in cardiac arrest at a house in Packington Lane, Meriden.
“The man in his 70s was declared dead at the scene. He had suffered bite injuries, which were found to be the cause of death.
“Seven dogs were seized at the scene and a 75-year-old woman from the Coleshill area was arrested on suspicion of owning a dog dangerously out of control.”
Dad-of-three Tony, ran a veterinary surgery in Birmingham with late wife Louise from 1980 until they both retired.
He was also a steam locomotive fan and helped to restore a 1914 engine.
His funeral was held in Coleshill last month.
The National Traction Engine Trust paid tribute to Tony on social media ahead of the memorial.
A post on Facebook read: “We were saddened to hear of the death of Tony Harrington last November.
“Tony was tragically killed last November and circumstances surrounding his death are still part of a police investigation.”
Fatal XL Bully attacks
Ian “Scouse” Langley, 54, was protecting his puppy when the animal pounced on him outside a home in Sunderland in October 2023.
Ian Price, 52, was viciously savaged in September 2023 by the beasts as he tried to protect his elderly mum from them after they escaped.
Jonathan Hogg, 37, was killed in May 2023 entered the dog’s pen when it went for him, leaving bite wounds on his arm, leg and head.
Natasha Johnston, 28, was mauled to death while walking a pack of dogs in January 2023 was believed to have been killed by her own pet – an American Bully XL.
Shirley Patrick, 83, died 17 days after being mauled in a “hellish”, violent dog attack in December 2022.
Ian Symes, 34, who was known to friends as “Wiggy”, died at a recreation ground in Fareham, Hampshire, after the savage attack in August 2022.
Joanne Robinson, 43, was fatally mauled by pet Rocco at her home in Rotherham, South Yorkshire in July 2022.
Keven Jones, 62, went into cardiac arrest after being bitten by Cookie-Doe at Chanel Fong’s home in Wrexham, North Wales in May 2022.
Bella-Rae Birch, one, was mauled to death in March 2022 at her home by the American Bully XL.
Jack Lis, 10, was killed by a hulking XL Bully dog named Beast in November 2021 as he played at friend’s home in Caerphilly