The inconsolable father of six-month-old baby, Maleek, who was mauled to death by the family’s pet dog on Tuesday, has given permission to his close friends to euthanize the animal.
“I have to get rid of that dog. I can’t bear to see it alive. I can’t even live and see that dog because everyday it will hurt me for how he killed my son,” Khan said.
Khan, 30, said hours after the tragedy on Tuesday, many well-wishers, family and friends wanted to kill the dog immediately but he said he was still determined to get rid of the dog, named Simba, in a humane manner.
Simba, who was a Rottweiler-mixed breed, was scheduled to be put to sleep by a veterinarian late yesterday. Khan said, however, he took good care of Simba for over a year and grew very fond of him.
Recalling what he was told happened on Tuesday, Khan said this wife, Keisha, who is pregnant, was cleaning the yard and had baby Maleek, who was eating an ice cream at the time, in the pram, near to where Simba was chained, when tragedy struck.
“The dog stretched and stretched until one of his paws hooked onto the pram and tilted it over. When the child fell with the pram the dog grabbed at the pram and the child and that was it,” Khan said as he broke down in tears again.
“It is a loss. We coming along you know but it is a terrible loss. I can’t believe what happened. There are no words to express what I am going through at this point,” Khan said.
However, Khan still expressed surprise at the attack, saying the dog was accustomed seeing the baby around and had never showed any signs of wanting to attack Maleek. The baby was initially scheduled to be buried under Muslim rights yesterday.
However, due to the absence of the pathologist at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, yesterday, the autopsy was re-scheduled for today. Once the autopsy is done today the funeral is expected to be held immediately after.