A newborn baby has been brutally killed by the family dog after it got spooked by the coughing of the mother.
Polo, the dog
Police have confirmed an American Staffie-Great Dane mix dog bit a newborn baby to death in San Diego.
The three-day-old boy was in bed with his parents who were watching TV when the mother coughed and startled the two-year-old, 44kg (7 stone) dog called Polo.
It reacted by biting the child, said Sergeant Tu Nguyen of the San Diego police child abuse unit.
"The mom coughed unexpectedly and it startled the dog, which bit the baby, causing traumatic injury," said Nguyen, whose unit was called in to investigate the death of any child.
"The parents were able to separate the dog from the baby and they rushed him to the hospital but they were not able to save him," he said.
This is where the sad incident took place
Nguyen, who called the death a "tragic accident," declined to say where the baby was injured and said police are waiting for the Medical Examiner's report on the exact cause of death.
The dog was taken into custody by San Diego County Animal Services, officials said. Any dog that bites a person is placed in quarantine by animal control, said Dan DeSousa, deputy director of the agency.
DeSousa said the family can direct animal control to euthanise the dog or they can claim the dog at the end of a 10-day quarantine, but so far the agency has not received any instructions.
If the family do not reclaim Polo, he will be put down.