Mrs Mobin, who asked for her first name to be withheld, told 9news.com.au she was travelling to Qatar to watch the FIFA World Cup and dropped her two dogs – Coco and Candy – off at the pet-sitter’s home on November 19.
“We had used the dog-sitter a few times before when she lived in her previous home. I was happy that she knew my dogs,” Mobin said.
Mobin said all appeared to be going well at first, with the pet sitter sending her regular updates on how her dogs were doing while she was in Qatar.
Then, Mobin said she received a panicked call from the pet-sitter last Friday.
“She was crying and saying ‘we have a situation’,” Mobin said.
The pet sitter told Mobin two dogs who lived next door to her – believed to be American Staffies – had chewed through the fence and attacked both Coco and Candy while she was out shopping.
Coco was rushed to the vet but could not be saved, while Candy was missing, the pet sitter told Mobin.
“The dog sitter was saying I’m sure that Candy is at the dog owner’s house but he is not letting us go in and find her,” Mobin said.
Mobin said she immediately booked the first available flight home, for the next day.
“I flew back on a 13-hour flight and the whole family was crying. We were shocked and traumatised,” she said.
Mobin sent friends around to the dog owner’s house, who also allegedly refused to let them in to look for Candy.
The friends called police.
A spokesperson for Victoria Police confirmed to 9news.com.au that officers attended the property on Saturday and located Candy’s body in the neighbour’s yard.
The incident was now a matter for council, the spokesperson said.
Whittlesea Council’s director of planning and development, Justin O’Meara, said the attack was being investigated, but did not respond to questions about whether the dogs had who attacked Mobin’s pets had been impounded.
“The City of Whittlesea is investigating the circumstances of the dog attack on Saturday night so are unable to provide any further information at this stage,” O’Meara said.
Mobin said as soon as she got back to Melbourne she went to the veterinarian’s clinic to say goodbye to her dogs, who had been with her family for 10 years.
She then went to see the owner of the dogs who attacked Coco and Candy.
“The owner came out, he was yelling at us and then he started laughing. He didn’t even apologise,” Mobin claimed.
Mobin said she feared the dogs who killed Coco and Candy posed a serious danger.
“My Coco was cut from the neck, it was like a knife,” she said.
O’Meara said while the council’s investigation was still in its early stages, he was confident it was not the same dogs involved in last Friday’s attack.
