Footage has emerged showing the final stages of a dog attack in Pakenham which left a dachshund dead and debate over what really happened. Video: Suzan Delibasic

A staffy that mauled a dachshund to death will not be put down.

The Cardinia Council in Melbourne has completed a “thorough investigation” into the incident that unfolded earlier this month in a Pakenham park after Kashila Chintamunnee’s three dogs escaped from her yard.

Her labrador and two dachshunds reportedly ran to a nearby park where Claudia Harrison was walking her miniature staffy, Hero.

In a Facebook post Ms Chintamunnee claimed the staffy mauled one of the dachshunds, Coco, to death and that the owner just walked away after the attack.

But Ms Harrison defended her actions, claiming she was walking her dog on a lead with her son when the three dogs ran over and started attacking Hero.

She said she was trying to protect her son while separating the dogs, but by the time Coco’s owners came over it was too late.

A Cardinia Council spokeswoman told the Cranbourne Leader that no further action would be taken over the incident.

The lawyer acting for the Harrisons, Michael Faltermaier, said justice for Hero had been achieved.

“He is indeed a Hero and had to act to protect his owners,” Mr Faltermaier told the newspaper.

A Change.org petition set up to save Hero from being put down received more than 285,000 signatures.

There was also a Save Hero Facebook page where people posted pictures of their dogs with the hashtag #savehero.

“Hero’s owner was doing the right thing, walking her dog on a leash in a leash only area,” the woman who started the petition, Emma McLean, wrote.

“Coco, a dog half the size of Hero (as well as two other dogs) attacked Hero. Coco was a small breed and it is inevitable that in an attack a larger dog would cause extensive damage to a small dog.”

Mr Faltermaier said they wanted to thank the hundreds of thousands of supporters from around the world.

He said in his years as a lawyer, he had never seen such a positive response to a case.

“It is a timely reminder that our pets are like our children and we need to know where they are at all times,” he told the Leader.

“Hero is safe, saved and acknowledged for his heroic efforts as he should be.”

CCTV footage also emerged showing the final stages of the dog attack, which sparked debate over what really happened and which dogs were to blame for the incident.