{"id":394909,"date":"2026-01-07T23:30:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T23:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/394909\/"},"modified":"2026-01-07T23:30:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T23:30:10","slug":"nova-scotia-boy-killed-in-dog-attack-remembered-for-bright-smile-kindness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/394909\/","title":{"rendered":"Nova Scotia boy killed in dog attack remembered for bright smile, kindness"},"content":{"rendered":"

Community members in Nova Scotia\u2019s Shelburne County are rallying to support the family of a 13-year-old boy who died after being attacked by three dogs<\/a>, while police say they\u2019re working to \u201cfully understand\u201d what happened.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The teen was mauled by three \u201clarge-breed dogs\u201d \u2014 identified as two Cane Corsos and a Rottweiler by RCMP \u2014 while riding his bicycle past a property on Upper Sandy Cove Road in Welshtown, N.S., on the evening of Jan. 3.<\/p>\n

Police said the boy was airlifted to hospital in Halifax but later died from his injuries.<\/p>\n

The dogs were euthanized by a veterinarian the day after the attack, police added, and testing is underway for rabies and other factors.<\/p>\n

RCMP said investigators have been canvassing the area and collecting video footage. They\u2019ve also been interviewing a number of people about the dogs\u2019 \u201cday-to-day movements.\u201d<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

Staff Sgt. Mark Macpherson, the detachment commander for Shelburne District RCMP, said video footage obtained so far has shown that the dogs \u201cgot off the property\u201d while the boy was riding his bicycle on the street.<\/p>\n

As for any possible criminal charges, he said it\u2019s too early to determine.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe important thing here is we just want to find out what happened, and we\u2019re not looking to charge or not charge per se. We just want to get the facts together like we do in our investigations or any other investigation, and then make a decision from there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have to say that throughout these last few days, the dog owners have been cooperating with our investigative efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said RCMP databases have not shown any previous calls in relation to the dogs.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tDrew Nickerson, 13, is pictured riding his bike in front of his home in Nova Scotia\u2019s Shelburne County. The teen was attacked by three dogs while riding his bike on Jan. 2, 2026 and later died in hospital.\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy\/Dawn Nickerson\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Online fundraisers and community members have identified the victim as Drew Nickerson, a Grade 8 student at Shelburne Regional High School.<\/a><\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

A GoFundMe fundraiser organized by a close family friend, Trish Harris, had raised nearly $60,000 as of Wednesday afternoon for Drew\u2019s mother, Dawn Schnare Nickerson.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"For<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tGet breaking National news<\/p>\n

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.<\/p>\n

Harris told Global News that Drew was his mother\u2019s only child and a beloved member of the community who had many friends. He was \u201calways on his bicycle\u201d and loved outdoor activities like swimming and riding horses.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a small community when one person hurts, everybody hurts,\u201d said Harris.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tMore on Canada
\n\t\t\tMore videos\n\t\t<\/p>\n

\u201cI do have a message from Dawn. She asked me to thank everybody from the bottom of her heart. She doesn\u2019t know how she would have ever gotten by. She was afraid she was going to lose her home and this is going to help immensely.\u201d<\/p>\n

The local fishing community and seafood companies have also donated items and fresh lobster for a raffle in support of Drew\u2019s mother.<\/p>\n

A Facebook post from Southwest BLAST FC, a community soccer group, said Drew \u201cfound great joy in soccer and in being part of his teams.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\tTrending Now\n\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\/<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tTrump\u2019s actions in Venezuela suggest Canada is \u2018on the menu\u2019: ex-UN envoy\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\/<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tWestJet says shorter legroom on some flights will \u2018keep costs low\u2019\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cDrew will also be remembered for his bright smile, kindness, sense of humour and the light he brought to every space he entered. We hope many can find comfort in knowing how deeply he was loved, and we welcome the sharing of fond memories and photos that honour Drew and the joy he brought to so many,\u201d the post read.<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tThe teen was mauled by three \u201clarge-breed dogs\u201d \u2014 identified as two Cane Corsos and a Rottweiler by RCMP \u2014 while riding his bicycle past a property on Upper Sandy Cove Road in Welshtown, N.S., on the evening of Jan. 3.\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tMitchell Bailey\/Global News\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\u2018Extremely distressing\u2019<\/p>\n

Counselling and support is being offered in the small fishing community, located about 200 kilometres southwest of Halifax.<\/p>\n

The Tri-County Regional Centre for Education (TCRCE) confirmed earlier this week that help was available to school staff and students.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe extend our heartfelt sympathy to the family, friends, and all those affected. A loss such as this is felt widely, and we recognize the impact it has across our schools and broader communities,\u201d TCRCE\u2019s executive director, Jared Purdy, wrote in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cSupports are in place at Shelburne Regional High and neighboring schools (Tuesday) and in the days ahead, including psychologists and counsellors. These trained professionals are meeting with classes and individuals, providing spaces for students and staff to talk, and offering support to anyone who may need it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

Macpherson said the incident has been \u201cextremely distressing\u201d for everyone involved.<\/p>\n

\u201c(It\u2019s been difficult) not just ourselves, but all the emergency responders, the nurses at the hospital and everybody. There is a very somber feeling all this week since this happened I think across the community,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut the focus really is on his loved ones and his friends and family. Our thoughts go out to them and it\u2019s a very difficult time for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anyone who has information and has not yet spoken with police is asked to contact the Shelburne District RCMP at 902\u2011875\u20112490.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Community members in Nova Scotia\u2019s Shelburne County are rallying to support the family of a 13-year-old boy who…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":394910,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[49,48,114107,44],"class_list":["post-394909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-dog-attack","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/394909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=394909"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/394909\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/394910"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=394909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=394909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=394909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}