Woman, 50s, seriously injured following Carlow dog attack

Enquiries are ongoing following the violent incident in Carlow Town

A woman was airlifted to hospital with serious injuries after she was attacked by a dog in Carlow town today.

The woman, who is in her 50s, is believed to have suffered injuries to her face and head in an attack by a pit bull terrier-type dog at approximately 2pm today.

The woman was removed from her home, understood to be in the Ashfield estate and was taken by air ambulance to the Mater Hospital in Dublin.

Gardaí said that her injuries are believed to be serious.

The woman was attacked by one of her own dogs in her home, it is understood.

A vet who attended the scene believed that the dog was a restricted breed. The dog was euthanised and the scene was preserved for technical examination.

A dog warden was also requested at the scene this afternoon.

"Gardaí and emergency services attended the home following reports of a dog attack at a residential property in Carlow Town this afternoon," a garda statement said.

Garda enquiries are ongoing.

Mayor of Carlow, Fine Gael councillor Paul Doogue, said that the people of Carlow's thoughts and prayers were with the woman tonight.

"It is distressing news. Your heart would go out to her and her family," Mr Doogue said.

"I'm thinking of her and wishing her a speedy recovery.

"It's awful for something like this to happen and just after Christmas, as we're moving into the New Year."

The dog which attacked the woman may have been an XL Bully, according to some reports.

The XL Bully, a large and muscular dog, originally bred from the American Pitbull Terrier and other bulldog breeds, was banned in Ireland following a spate of serious dog attacks.

Some 114 XL Bully dogs were euthanised between October 2024 and October 2025, according to Department of Agriculture figures released to the Journal.

These dogs had been surrendered to and seized by council dog wardens.

A ban on importing, breeding, selling and re-homing XL Bully dogs was introduced in October, 2024.

And since February, further regulations made it illegal to own an XL Bully type dog without a certificate of exemption from the local authority.

The ban brought Ireland into line with regulations in Britain and the North.

XL Bullys were banned and seriously restricted in the UK after they were involved in about half of fatal dog attacks between 2021 and 2023.

The Irish ban was introduced following a spate of dog attacks, including one which led to the death of Nicole Morey in Limerick.

Ms Morey was killed by her dog at her home in June, 2024.

She had just returned from celebrating her 23rd birthday when she was attacked at about 11.40pm at her home outside Ballyneety village, some 12k from Limerick city.

Armed gardaí shot one of the dogs dead in an effort to stop the dog mauling the young woman.

A young boy, Alejandro Mizsan, was left with serious injuries following an attack by an XL Bully in November 2022.

The dog attacked him while he was playing, aged nine, near his home in an estate in Enniscorthy, Wexford, tearing off his bottom lip, mauling his cheeks and injuring the child's legs and body.

A man and a woman were jailed following the attack which left Alejandro with serious facial injuries.

Ireland does not ban any other breed of dog, but there are 11 restricted breeds.

Those animals on the list are required to be kept on a short lead and wear a muzzle while in public places.