The lacerations on Eli's head cause by the dog attack.

The lacerations on Eli's head cause by the dog attack. Contributed

SIX-YEAR old Eli is still suffering from the effects of a dog attack in January, that left his face mauled and spirits broken.

According to his parents, while the physical wounds have healed, leaving only scars, the emotional and mental impact the attack has had on their son is great.

The family claim that on January 9 this year, Eli went with his dad Damien to drop off some dog food to their work friends place in Beaconsfield.

While at the house, Eli was lunged at by the home owners large bull arab dog, only saved by his dad who had to shoulder charge the dog out of the way.

Eli was left with deep cuts to several parts of his face and requiring 25 stitches.

"But those things heal,” Eli's mother Nicole Englebrecht said.

"What doesn't is the trauma it has caused him, before this attack I had a confident, happy little 5-year-old who was ready to take on the world, now he's petrified and also reverted back to a toddler in some of his behaviours.

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"He couldn't dress himself, he's too scared to go to the toilet, he's scared to sleep or be by himself at any point, he started wetting the bed again, and he kept saying how he was afraid he was going to die from the attack and why wouldn't it go away.

"He asks if he is ugly now and if his scars will heal, we had to start taking him to see a child psychologist to help him get past it.”

Ms Englebrecht said after seeing the devastating impact the attack has had on her son, and fearing it would happen again to someone else, the family wanted the animal to be put down.

At the time of the incident council seized the dog for being potentially dangerous and the matter was later taken to court.

In a written statement to council, Mr Englebrecht described the other ways the attack had impacted his family and why they were insisting on taking the matter further.

"Since the dog attack myself and my family have been severely affected, my son is scared for life physically and emotionally,” he wrote.

"I see the attack every time I close my eyes, I cannot sleep at night as I have nightmares and cry myself to sleep, my son will not engage with dogs anymore as he is so scared he will be attacked unprovoked.

"I still cannot get the scream for help from Eli on January 9th out of my mind or the image of all the blood that soaked his face and clothes, the extra strain on all four of us has caused my wife and I to fight to all the time, the post-traumatic stress and anxiety is not fair on my family and we wish this on no other family.”

Mackay Regional Council worked with the family to have the dog seized until it was determined as either dangerous or not through the QCAT court system.

On June 14 the family were told via phone that the dog had been deemed dangerous but as the dog owners had chosen to abide by council regulations and it would be kept in a pen, that it would be returned to the family and not put down.

"Council were fantastic, but we weren't happy with the court decision,” Ms Englebrecht said.

"As a pet lover I understand euthanising a dog is very sad, but when it has attacked a defenceless child I believe there is no other option.

"We just wanted to ensure this never happens again and that if it got out, no other child or person was at risk of being attacked, we don't want anyone to have to go through what we have.”

The animal has since been returned to its owners, and the Englebrecht family have relocated to Brisbane.

According to Mackay Regional Council, nine other dogs have been declared dangerous in the Mackay region so far this year.

Community and client services director Bridget Mather said the current total of dangerous dogs registered in Mackay was around 30.

"Owners have to take responsibility for their pets and ensuring the safety of the community is part of that responsibility,” she said.

"Dogs are only declared dangerous when there are grounds to do so and such action is taken to ensure public safety.

"Owners of dogs that are declared dangerous are provided with all the necessary information, including right of appeal, to comply with state legislation.”

There are currently two seized dangerous dogs in the Animal Management Centre.

In another dangerous dog matter that Mackay Regional Council has been dealing with this year, it has been decided that Winston the dog will be put down.

Council said the owners of Winston the dog "have been given more than adequate time to comply with the Dangerous Dog declaration to have the animal returned.”

According to CEO Craig Doyle, the owners have chosen to ignore the process and the time periods, which are governed by Queensland legislation.

"We have provided the owners with all the options available to them and they simply refuse to take any steps to comply so they can get Winston back,” he said.

"We simply have no more options left,”

Council said that officers have held several discussions with the owners to explain that the appeal period to QCAT has expired and nothing has been submitted from the owners.

The latest meeting was last week with several other communications held this week.

"There are over 30 owners in our region who have complied with dangerous dog declarations and we have no issues with any of them,” a council spokesperson said.

"Our message is clear comply and the dog is returned.”

Mr Doyle said euthanising a dangerous dog is only carried out when all other steps are exhausted.

In a further incident that took place over the recent school holidays, a North Queensland boy narrowly avoided losing his life by mere millimetres after being brutally attacked by two dogs in the main street of Chillagoe.

Mother Cathy Swanson spent two nights camping with her sons in the former mining town for the school holidays, when 12-year-old Blake was unexpectedly attacked from behind by two cattle cross kelpie dogs.

The family had been out for lunch when Blake glanced at the dogs sitting nearby at the convenience store, "one was on the chain and one wasn't”.

"They got him down to the ground and somebody came out and called the dogs off," she said.

She had been inside the convenience store when she heard the commotion.

Blake has since been treated for severe lacerations to his body following the attack.