On the evening of September 4, 2024, in Yuncaizhicheng residential compound, Xintang Subdistrict, Xiaoshan District, Hangzhou, a resident walked a small dog without a leash. The dog chased a girl playing nearby. The girl’s family member then threw the dog to death, and the dog owner called police. The subdistrict notice said the street office, police station and community were mediating the matter.

Unleashed walking was wrong; throwing the dog to death was not the answer

This case contains two facts that cannot cancel each other. Walking a dog without a leash is irresponsible and can frighten children. But public reports did not show that the girl was bitten. A small dog could be driven away, blocked, picked up by someone able to do so, isolated, or handled through property management and police. Lethal violence was not the only path.

Emergency avoidance must not become a blank cheque

The legal discussion in the report said whether the act was emergency avoidance depends on the concrete situation. That is exactly why the case should be recorded carefully: fear and anger are real, but they cannot automatically erase every later consequence.

Double responsibility

The dog owner failed to control the animal and put both child and dog at risk. The family member who killed the dog turned risk control into harm to life. Community rules should come before conflict, and restraint should come before irreversible violence.

Timeline

• 2024-09-04: the dog was walked without a leash and chased a girl in the residential compound.
• Later that evening: the girl’s family member threw the dog to death; the dog owner called police.
• 2024-09-05: Xintang Subdistrict issued a notice saying mediation was under way.
• 2024-09-06: Qilu Evening News / Dazhong News reported the dispute and legal discussion.

Public Source

• Qilu Evening News / Dazhong News