Federal District civil police have opened an inquiry into the death of veterinarian Vitória Valle de Oliveira Pinha, 36, who was attacked by a dog from the K-9 unit of Brazil's Senate. The case is being handled by the 5th police precinct in Brasilia as a workplace accident, according to newspaper Folha de S.Paulo.
Vitória was bitten on Tuesday, August 18, while tending to animals at the Senate kennel. According to the police, she was on duty when, "under circumstances still to be properly clarified", the dog attacked her. She suffered severe neck injuries and went into cardiopulmonary arrest before colleagues came to her aid. Treated by military firefighters, she was taken to the Hospital de Base, underwent surgery and remained in critical condition. The Senate confirmed her death on Saturday, August 22.
Rescue and investigation
According to the Na Mira column of news portal Metrópoles, a colleague who arrived at the kennel after the attack found the dog still loose and managed to shut it inside a crate before finding Vitória on the floor, bleeding heavily. Staff used the Senate's pre-hospital care kit to compress her wounds until the institution's own brigade and then an emergency crew took over.
The incident was registered as "failure to take due care in guarding or handling animals", and the site underwent forensic examination. Detectives from the 5th precinct carried out procedures at the kennel and the hospital and heard witnesses to establish how the attack unfolded. Police told Folha that, depending on the findings, the inquiry could be used to hold possible culprits accountable and to support a compensation claim by the family.
In a statement, the Senate mourned the death and said Vitória worked as a dog handler: she was a veterinary medicine intern at the institution from 2022 to 2024 and later returned as an outsourced professional providing animal care. "In this moment of grief, the Senate expresses its solidarity with Vitória's family, friends and work colleagues, remembered for the dedication she always brought to her duties," the statement read. Folha sought comment from the Senate on Monday, August 24, about the inquiry but had received no reply by publication time.
The dog that attacked the veterinarian is a Belgian Malinois, a medium-to-large breed used in police and guard operations that demands experienced handlers. According to Metrópoles, the animal was trained to serve in the K-9 unit of the Legislative Police, the force responsible for security in Congress. Folha reports the dog was pulled from duty after the attack. Cinotecnia, the name of the Senate's dog service in Portuguese, is the field of training and handling working dogs.