Baby gets smothered by dog

A four-month-old died from suffocation after a dog laid on top of her while she slept, a coroner has ruled.

Korowai-Aroha McKeilah MaruWalker died while sleeping on a chair in the lounge at a Hamilton home on March 21, 2020.

Known to sleep on that chair too, was their pet bulldog who laid on top of the baby smothering her to death.

The coroner said Korowai-Aroha’s death was tragic but no formal recommendations were made.

Korowai-Aroha was staying at her grandparent’s home on the night of her death. Living on the property was a bulldog, named Wairua, who usually slept on a three-seater couch in the lounge. As Korowai-Aroha had outgrown her cot, she was put down to sleep on the reclined Lazyboy chair in the lounge about 9pm that night. At 10pm, her kaumātua went to sleep on an air mattress on the floor near her.

The baby awoke at 2am, was bottlefed and then put back to sleep on the chair where she immediately fell asleep.

The following morning, the baby’s aunt, who also lived on the property, entered the lounge and saw Wairua asleep on top of the baby. The dog was pulled off the baby, who was unresponsive. Despite resuscitation efforts, she could not be revived.

In the past coroners had made multiple recommendations to agencies to ensure the safe-sleeping message from health professionals is consistent, and appropriately given to new parents.

Ministry of Health had launched a prevention programme in August 2017 directed at significantly reducing the number of deaths of babies.

Coroner Matthew Bates said Korowai-Aroha’s mother had stopped smoking immediately when she found out she was pregnant. There had been no bed sharing with whānau, but the chair Korowai-Aroha was sleeping on was known to be used on occasion by the dogs of the kaumātua.

Despite this, he said Korowai-Aroha was ‘‘clearly loved and well cared for by her whānau’’.

For that reason, he deemed a formal recommendation unnecessary.