{"id":303468,"date":"2026-02-26T16:52:23","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T16:52:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/303468\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T16:52:23","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T16:52:23","slug":"sunlive-te-puna-residents-battle-wandering-dogs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/303468\/","title":{"rendered":"SunLive – Te Puna residents battle wandering dogs"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Te Puna resident says his grandchildren no longer walk around the small seaside town for fear of aggressive, roaming dogs.<\/p>\n

Tommy Wilson, an author and grandfather, carries a golf club after dog attacks on the east side of Te Puna, on the outskirts of Tauranga.<\/p>\n

One woman, who did not want to speak to Checkpoint, was attacked and bitten by a dog while out walking five years ago.<\/p>\n

There have been two other minor attacks on a person and on another dog reported to Tauranga City Council in the past six months.<\/p>\n

Wilson raised his concerns about wandering dogs in Te Puna before a fatal dog attack in Northland last Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Mihiata Te Rore was attacked and killed by three dogs<\/a> while visiting a property in Kaihu, north of Dargaville.<\/p>\n

The 62-year-old is the fourth person killed by dogs in the past four years.<\/p>\n

At the weekend, a father was seriously injured while protecting his son from a dog attack<\/a> at a property they were visiting in Christchurch. Both were taken to hospital.<\/p>\n

Last year, Auckland Council alone received almost 17,000 reports of roaming dogs and more than 1300 reports of dog attacks on people<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In Te Puna, Wilson said residents had been wrestling with an increasing number of aggressive dogs for years.<\/p>\n

\u201cI walk around the road with my trusty four-iron.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Tommy

\nTommy Wilson carries a golf club while walking around Te Puna to fend off roaming and aggressive dogs. Photo \/ RNZ, Nick Monro<\/p>\n

Wilson said he had been forced to hit dogs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll give them a good club and with my tokotoko. I\u2019ll smack them … yeah, I actually punched a dog in the face because that was the only way to get it to back off.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just coming too close and snarling, baring the teeth, not looking cool. And I\u2019m sure everyone can tell you a dog war story in this town.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Checkpoint was visiting Te Puna, a big dog wandered across the rugby club field, past our cameraman and up to a nearby playground where two mothers were chatting with three young children in tow.<\/p>\n

One mother pulled a toddler close, and the other, who was carrying a baby, gave the dog a wide berth as it wandered around the playground before eventually trotting off in the direction it had come.<\/p>\n

It was unclear who or where the dog\u2019s owner was.<\/p>\n

\"The

\nThe roaming dog on Te Puna’s rugby field. Photo \/ RNZ, Nick Monro<\/p>\n

Wilson said he was not the only one to carry a weapon while out walking. He said a neighbour carried a large tokotoko (ceremonial walking stick).<\/p>\n

\u201cHe refuses to stop walking. He\u2019s one of the bravehearts, and I see him walking all the time, but he\u2019s ready.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilson worried he could fend off only one aggressive dog at a time with his golf club and feared for anyone caught unprepared.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s when there\u2019s more than one dog, that\u2019s the problem. And I\u2019m reasonably fit, even though I\u2019m a koro. How does a little 4-, 5-, 6-year-old child fend themselves off against one dog, or a mother or an old kuia, a grandmother \u2013 they\u2019ve got no show.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Checkpoint's

\nCheckpoint’s Natalie Akoorie interviewing Tommy Wilson. Photo \/ RNZ, Nick Monro<\/p>\n

While there were no dogs on Te Puna Beach, where Wilson said they roamed in packs, there were dozens of paw prints.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can see, look, there\u2019s dog prints there, dog prints there. If it\u2019s just one set of footprints it\u2019s okay, but if you see more than a set of footprints it\u2019s usually time to U-turn and go back and go home.\u201d<\/p>\n

He questioned the need for owners to keep aggressive dogs, believing it was partly to guard against crime.<\/p>\n

He said that, when his children were young, they \u201cfree-ranged\u201d around the town.<\/p>\n

However, it was different now, and his moko did not feel safe walking alone.<\/p>\n

Instead, they were driven to school, which was not their local one, and would not walk 300m to their marae because they were scared.<\/p>\n

\u201c[There\u2019s] usually a big bad dog sitting outside here. He\u2019s okay for the people that live close, but he\u2019s the one that chases and bites our car tyres and our kids are totally freaked out by him \u2013 he\u2019s huge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Te Puna School principal Neil Towersey said wandering dogs sometimes appeared in the playground.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the children are terrified. I get a padder tennis bat and a cone or something noisy \u2013 go out and give it a bit of a clatter and a bang and do my best impression to scare them off, and they usually take off with their tail between their legs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Te

\nTe Puna School principal Neil Towersey says wandering dogs sometimes appear in the playground. Photo \/ RNZ, Nick Monro<\/p>\n

He said hunting dogs were particularly intimidating for the children.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of them have had bad experiences with dogs. We\u2019ve got a little boy at the moment who\u2019s absolutely terrified of dogs, so it\u2019s something we\u2019re a little bit mindful of.\u201d<\/p>\n

That boy had been bitten by a dog.<\/p>\n

He said the school had taught children about dog safety, and he believed the Dog Control Act \u201cneeds tightening up\u201d.<\/p>\n

At the town tennis courts, a German Shepherd wandered about opposite the chapel, and another dog sat and watched from afar before retreating home.<\/p>\n

Jade, who did not want her surname used, had four dogs in her care at the town rugby field.<\/p>\n

She said she did not live in Te Puna but went there regularly and rarely encountered aggressive dogs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve come across some dogs that don\u2019t look very friendly, but I can call mine back and they just come straight back, and I\u2019ve never had any dog attacks or dog attack me out here, so that\u2019s promising, touch wood.<\/p>\n

\"A

\nA Western Bay of Plenty councillor acknowledged roaming dogs were a problem in Te Puna. Photo \/ RNZ, Nick Monro<\/p>\n

She fostered rescue dogs for a charity, and the four dogs with her were not hers.<\/p>\n

She was unsure what breeds they were.<\/p>\n

She said it was not a dog\u2019s fault if it was aggressive; it was up to owners to raise and socialise their dogs responsibly.<\/p>\n

She recommended that anyone who came across an aggressive dog should not run away or show fear.<\/p>\n

Wilson said he wanted a community effort to change attitudes, incentivise responsible dog owners and support struggling owners to provide appropriate care for their dogs.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s not leave it up to the people who don\u2019t care. We care, and we want to do something about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, why should the dogs have the best beach in the world? How about us? We want our beach back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Western Bay of Plenty councillor and Te Puna resident Graeme Elvin said there was no doubt roaming dogs were a problem in Te Puna.<\/p>\n

However, he believed it was a localised issue and said it had to be solved by a change in behaviour.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt isn\u2019t solved by throwing a whole lot of money at the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

He met the council\u2019s dog control officers on Tuesday to discuss the concerns and was impressed with their efforts.<\/p>\n

\"Photo

\nPhoto \/ RNZ, Nick Monro<\/p>\n

Council general manager of regulatory services Alison Curtis declined an interview, but in a statement said that, in the past six months, the council had received 19 complaints about roaming dogs in the area, and two complaints about dog attacks, one involving a person and one involving another dog.<\/p>\n

Both attacks were minor.<\/p>\n

\u201cBased on general observations, these numbers are low to average, compared with the rest of the district.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of the complaints related to dogs roaming on the sports fields.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn response, animal services officers visited the fields several times over a two-week period in November and December, while the fields were in use.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a result of these visits, one dog was impounded.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since then, the council had received only three reports of roaming dogs in the area, which made up part of the 19.<\/p>\n

\u201cCouncil can only act on issues we are made aware of, so we ask people to please report any concerns by calling us on 0800 926 732.\u201d<\/p>\n

RNZ<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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