Bengaluru: Welsh man bitten by stray dog during morning run; residents voice safety fears amid rising attacks

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 Welsh man bitten by stray dog during morning run; residents voice safety fears amid rising attacks

A Welsh expat was bitten by a stray dog on HAL Road, Bengaluru, highlighting the city's escalating stray dog issue. The incident, which saw the dog chase the jogger for 100 metres, follows a similar near-miss for his wife. Bengaluru has recorded over 14,500 stray dog bites this year, with experts citing insufficient sterilization efforts.

BENGALURU: A Welsh national working here as part of a start-up was bitten by a stray dog while on his routine morning run near the old airport terminal on HAL Road here on Sunday, once again highlighting the city's growing stray dog problem.

Dog attack

Dog attack

The victim, Oliver Jones, said a pack of stray dogs chased him for nearly 100 metres before one lunged and bit his ankle. "These ones were weird as they chased me for more than 100 metres, before taking a chunk out of my ankle," he posted on X, describing the harrowing encounter. Bystanders rushed him to a nearby hospital, where he received anti-rabies and tetanus shots. Jones added that his wife had narrowly escaped a similar attack the week before.

His social media post drew widespread reactions, with many sharing similar experiences. Richard Kingston wrote: "There's a bunch of stray dogs near the Commercial Street signal that chase me every morning. These dogs are very aggressive."Residents from HAL and Murugeshpalya expressed mounting safety concerns. "It's terrifying these days. One feels unsafe even walking to the grocery shop after dusk," said Aishwarya Ramesh, a resident at 3rd Cross, HAL 3rd Stage.

A retired Air Force official, who requested anonymity, added: "We've lodged multiple complaints with GBA, but the number of strays only seems to be rising."Data from the Animal Husbandry wing of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) shows that the city recorded more than 14,500 stray dog bites between Jan and Aug 2025, with an annual count of 30,000 cases. Animal welfare experts note that lack of sustained sterilisation and vaccination drives has worsened the situation.Though Jones said he was recovering well, Sunday's experience has left more than a physical scar. More so, since he said he loves strays, with some of them even keeping pace with him during his morning jog.GBA health and animal husbandry officials said: "Our teams have been conducting sterilisation drives and ensuring most dogs in our database are covered under the animal birth control and vaccination programme."TOI reached out to Jones for further comments, but he did not respond.

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