Stray dogs are again making headlines in Romania after a four-year-old boy was attacked and killed near Tei park in Colentina area of Bucharest.

The boy's six-year old brother was also bitten by a dog but managed to escape and tell his grandmother who called the police.

The four-year-old was later found dead in a bush. According to police, the dog attack happened on plot of private land adjoining the park, which exonerates the city hall of any responsibility.

“The incident happened on a private property. The dogs are from around the park, and are fed by dog lovers from nearby,” said Razvan Bancescu, who coordinates the Authority for Animal Supervision and Protection.

He added that the city hall could not gather all the dogs in Bucharest and euthanize them.

However, dogs found on public property will be taken and sterilized, with a budget already in place for this.

The procedures for hiring private companies to gather and sterilize the dogs will be finalized this week, which will speed up the process.

Bucharest is home to over 64,000 stray dogs, according to latest data from the Authority for Animal Supervision and Protection.

In 2012, the authority gathered around 3,500 dogs from the streets of Bucharest to sterilize them, out of which 2,000 were back on public property, 1,400 were adopted, and 46 were euthanized.

editor@romania-insider.com