PAPER
J Forensic Sci, July 2017, Vol. 62, No. 4 doi: 10.1111/1556-4029.13378 Available online at: onlinelibrary.wiley.com
PATHOLOGY/BIOLOGY Kimberley J. Omond,1,2 M.B.B.S.; Calle Winskog,1,2 M.D.; Allan Cala,3 M.B.B.S.; and Roger W. Byard,1,2 M.D.
Neonatal Limb Amputation—An Unusual Form of Postmortem Canine Predation
ABSTRACT: Cases of postmortem canine predation often involve elderly recluses and their dogs. The face, head, and genitalia are targeted.
Two unusual cases of postmortem canine predation of abandoned newborns are described to demonstrate an unusual alternative pattern of mutilation related to the small size of the decedents, marked decomposition, and canine scavenging behavior. Both bodies were abandoned/concealed soon after birth and were subsequently disturbed by dogs. Both were markedly decomposed with absent arms. Other injuries included skin and soft tissue defects of the torsos, with loss of distal portions of the right foot and the left lower leg in one case. No interstitial hemorrhage was observed in any of the exposed soft tissue wounds. There were no significant head or neck injuries. These cases show that patterns of postmortem canine predation will vary depending on the age, physical characteristics, degree of decomposition, and location of decedents.
KEYWORDS: forensic science, postmortem predation, dog, concealed newborn, limb amputation, canine scavenging Postmortem animal predation is regularly encountered in medicolegal autopsies (1,2). Cases often involve an elderly recluse who may have shared his or her home with a range of animals, sometimes in the setting of Diogenes syndrome. This is characterized by social isolation, poor hygiene, hoarding of rubbish, squalor, and failure to seek medical assistance. Deaths in this syndrome resulting from natural disease may not be detected for some time resulting in the entrapped animals feeding on the body (3,4). While dogs typically feed on the face and head, as these regions are usually unclothed and exposed, on occasion they may target the genitalia, raising concerns of a sadistic homicide (5,6). The following cases are reported to demonstrate yet another unusual pattern of canine predation involving limb removal from abandoned newborns.
the right and left arms which had been disarticulated at the shoulders (Fig. 1). The wound edges were irregular. A defect in the left flank at the lower border of the rib cage penetrated into the abdominal cavity. No interstitial hemorrhage was observed in any of the exposed soft tissues of the trunk or arms. The torso showed no other signs of injury, and there were no injuries to the face, scalp, neck, lower limbs, or external genitalia. On internal examination, no natural disease was identified that could have caused or contributed to the death, although assessment was limited by the changes of advanced decomposition. The cause of death was undetermined, and it could not be established whether the infant had been live born or not. The amputations and soft tissue defects without hemorrhage were in keeping with postmortem canine predation.
Case Reports Case 1 The body of a male newborn was abandoned outside his mother’s home address following an alleged delivery into a toilet. His mother claimed that there had never been any evidence of life. Two days later, the mutilated body of the neonate was found being dragged into the yard by a neighbor’s dog. At autopsy, the body was that of a full-term male infant. The body was severely decomposed with skin slippage and discoloration. The most significant findings were the absence of both
1 School of Medicine, The University of Adelaide, Frome Rd, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia. 2 Forensic Science SA, 21 Divett Place, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia. 3 NSW Health Pathology, Newcastle, NSW 2300, Australia. Received 15 Aug. 2016; and in revised form 24 Oct. 2016; accepted 24 Oct. 2016.
© 2017 American Academy of Forensic Sciences
FIG. 1––Anterior aspect of the body of a newborn male demonstrating marked decomposition with loss of both arms and skin/soft tissue of the torso from postmortem dog predation.
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Case 2 The body of a female newborn was wrapped in a towel, placed into a plastic bag and left in the garage at her home address by her mother who had concealed the pregnancy and received no antenatal care. Delivery allegedly occurred underwater in a bathtub, the mother claiming that there had been no evidence of life. Several weeks later, the mutilated body was found in the yard being eaten by the family dog. At autopsy, the body was that of a decomposed newborn female infant with advanced skin slippage and discoloration. The most significant findings were the absence of both arms with stripping of skin and soft tissues from the chest wall bilaterally. The area of soft tissue loss extended from the axillae posteriorly to the back and from the hairline to the lower midback (Fig. 2). The distal portions of the right foot were also missing, as was the left lower leg, with the exposed femoral condyles contaminated by dog hair and grass. Dog teeth marks were present on the medial aspect of the left thigh and around the right ear. Insect larvae (maggots) were found within the right external auditory meatus. No interstitial hemorrhage was observed in any of the exposed soft tissues of the trunk or limbs. There were no other injuries to the head, face, or neck. On internal examination, no natural disease was identified that could have caused or contributed to the death although the examination was limited by the changes of advanced decomposition. The cause of death was undetermined, and it could not be established whether the infant had been live born or not. The amputations and soft tissue defects on the torso, without hemorrhage and with dog teeth marks, were consistent with postmortem canine predation. The breed and physical characteristics of the dogs in either case had not been documented. Discussion Most postmortem canine predation occurs in the setting of socially isolated adults who have died of natural or other causes in their own homes (1,2,7). Cases involving infants are rare with injuries to infants and children from dogs usually being nonfatal and affecting mainly the 0–4-year-old age group (8). Lethal antemortem injuries from dogs can affect all ages, with a predilection for the elderly and the very young (9–13). Cases range from those with apparently minor tissue damage and
subsequent fulminant sepsis, to others where there has been significant vascular compromise and loss of tissues (14,15). Dogs attacking infants and children may focus on the craniocerebral region with fatal mechanisms involving crushing of the skull and brain, or removal of large amounts of soft tissues and bone, sometimes resulting in decapitation (9). Assessment of cases at autopsy by a veterinarian and an odontologist may provide valuable information on dental patterns that may help to identify the breed of attacking dog. DNA examination of wounds and the suspect animal may also provide corroborative evidence of contact. Injuries caused by postmortem canine predation may contrast with those found in cases of fatal dog bite due to differing motivations of the animals. Typically, postmortem foraging is initiated by hunger, whereas attacks in the living are often provoked by aggression or fear (3,10). Dog bite injuries in the living have scattered, irregular wounds with tooth puncture wounds and extensive hemorrhage, contrasting with postmortem predation where there may be massive tissue loss in a circumscribed area with minimal hemorrhage (1,3,16). Extensive postmortem feeding may result in complete skeletonization of the face and head with access to the thorax achieved by gnawing through the clavicles, sternum, and ribs (3). These actions expose the thoracic organs which may also be consumed, thus potentially making the determination of the cause of death difficult (6). In these types of cases, detachment of the upper extremities has been reported with removal to a secondary site for later consumption (17). The reported cases demonstrate an unusual pattern of postmortem canine predation where there had been specific targeting of the limbs. The failure to find the dismembered legs and arms in either case supports hunger as the motivation for the mutilation. The nature of the injuries was most likely determined by the characteristics of the decedents as both were newborn infants having relatively small sizes that enabled the attacking dogs to carry the bodies around. Domestic dogs often tend to carry toy animals by the limbs and are well known to vigorously shake prey. Detachment of the limbs may have been caused by this type of behavior that may have been facilitated by weakening of soft tissue support by advanced decomposition (3). The absence of gnaw marks in the first case may have been due to tissues and skin softening from decomposition resulting in separation of limbs without requiring significant chewing by the animal. In conclusion, this report describes two cases with unusual but very similar patterns of postmortem canine predation. In each case, dog feeding resulting in the absence of both arms had occurred after allegedly stillborn infants had been abandoned outside. Unusually, there were no significant head or neck injuries in either case. Patterns of postmortem animal predation will vary depending on the species of foraging animal and on the physical characteristics and environment of the decedent. It appears that newborns may be more at risk of losing limbs compared to physically larger and more robust older individuals. References
FIG. 2––Posterior aspect of the body of a newborn female demonstrating marked decomposition with loss of both arms, the left lower leg, and skin/ soft tissue of the torso from postmortem dog predation.
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[email protected]
