Dogs roaming Norway House 'going to kill somebody,' grandmother says after girl mauled

Heavenly Monias reports that since returning home to her northern Manitoba First Nation earlier this month, she has faced a barrage of questions about the origins of her scars.

“They say, ‘What happened to your cheek? What happened to your arm? What happened? Can you tell me the story?’” Heavenly shared.

Although the nine-year-old typically feels uneasy discussing the details of her mauling by ten dogs in Norway House Cree Nation last month, she recounted her experience to CBC News this week.

On the night of August 15, while walking home after searching for her younger brother, she encountered a pack of dogs.

“They started to chase me,” she explained, recalling the moment she ran from the dogs until she fell to the ground.

“That’s when the dogs got me and started biting me, scratching me,” she said.

Heavenly suffered a gash on her cheek, along with bites to her chest and arm. She remembers crying and spitting out blood until a passerby intervened and scared the dogs away.

"I was so hurt."

Her grandmother, Lorraine Trout, expressed concern about the dangers in Norway House, stating, "You have to watch your back."

Heavenly was airlifted to Winnipeg's Health Sciences Centre, where her cheek was stitched from her ear to her mouth. She is still wearing a cast due to difficulties straightening her arm and has been traveling to Winnipeg for physical therapy.

Trout noted that in the days following the attack, some of the dogs running free in the community were captured, but many still roam the First Nation, and she feels leadership isn't doing enough to address the situation.

"It’s as if they completely forgot" about her granddaughter, she remarked.

"Something has to be done with those dogs before they attack someone or kill someone," Trout warned. "Pretty soon, they’re going to kill somebody if they don’t do anything."

Trout added that Heavenly's eldest sister was nearly attacked by a group of dogs in Norway House just a week ago, and she fears the animals may corner her one day.

"It’s pretty sickening — like, you have to watch your back," she said, noting she still sees some of the dogs believed to be involved in Heavenly's attack and is working to identify their owners.

Regarding the incident, the RCMP stated that no charges have been filed as the owners of the dogs have not been identified.

"The RCMP are not looking for the dogs, as there are too many in the community and the victim is not in a position to positively identify which one attacked her," Sgt. Paul Manaigre explained in an email to CBC on Wednesday.

Deon Clarke, a Norway House band councillor, mentioned that a new bylaw requiring all dogs in the community to be leashed and registered may be implemented soon.

"Once we're able to identify which dogs are dangerous, then we can start laying penalties on the dog owners," he noted.

"Until that registry is put in place, we're kind of stuck in this situation."

Meanwhile, Heavenly expressed concern that someone else might be injured like she was. After her medical treatment in Winnipeg, she felt anxious about returning home due to the presence of the dogs but said her grandmother has been vigilant in keeping her safe.

"I get [anxious] when I see a dog, because sometimes there are dogs [around] my school," Heavenly admitted.

While hospitalized, she feared she would lose her smile, but she has since found comfort in her recovery.

"I can smile now."