Bermuda last year saw a sharp increase in the number of dog attacks and incidents around the Island, the latest Government figures have revealed.

The number of incidents reported to dog wardens and animal welfare officers shot up by 35 percent on the previous year, from 962 in 1999 to 1,302 in 2000.

And the rise was way above the figure in 1997, when just 772 incidents were recorded.

The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Annual Report showed that last year there were a total of 80 dog attacks -18 on people and 62 on animals. In 1997, that number had been 50.

Most of the dog attacks occurred in Devonshire, which saw a huge increase.However, the majority of the other parishes actually saw a decline in the number of attacks.

The report also showed that the number of dog collections last year was the highest in 12 years. A total of 721 dogs were taken by dog wardens last year, in comparison to 414 in 1999, 343 in 1998, and 249 in 1997. The only higher figure came in 1989, which proved a particularly bad year, with 783 dogs collected.

Last year's collection figure was 74 percent up on the previous year.

And a total of 17 dog fighting incidents were reported in 2000, as compared to just two in 1999.

But also on the increase was the number of dogs that had to be destroyed, which went up by more than 100 percent on 1999, from 115 to 285.

The department said it believed the figures may be as a result of increased public awareness.

During the last year, dog issues and problems have been highlighted more in the media, and more emphasis has been placed on education.

The report stated: "We do not believe that the amount of dogfighting has increased as dramatically, but the public awareness and reporting thereof has increased.

"This could be attributed to the media coverage and publicity cruelty received. Despite the fact that the number of complaints increased significantly, the wardens were still able to clear the backlog by the close of the year."

But the report also showed that dog owners were also tardy in renewing their licenses for their pets - 600 reminder letters were sent out in 1999, but the number of licensed dogs increased by only 393.

Nine people were sent before the courts last year on dog related offences and had to fork out a total of $6,300 in fines.

Inspector for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) Charles Whited said he was not remotely surprised by the figures because not only was the Island becoming more aware of animal cruelty and related problems, but younger and younger people were owning animals.

Mr. Whited said: "I'm not surprised in the slightest that the statistics have gone up as much as they have because we have seen daily how many pitbulls and illegal litters we have to deal with.

"One of the problems is that these dogs are ending up in the wrong hands - with children.

"It's the in thing and the cool thing to have a pitbull, but they are unable to look after them and are not responsible owners. These people are breeding dogs all over the place, leaving them untethered or left to stray, and they are causing problems.

"People are beginning to complain more and are calling one of the wardens or myself, or the Police animal welfare officer, so we are able to act. That is what we want them to do. We need information and help from the public.

"We are all working very hard and are being more pro-active in our approach. There is a big increase in the number of dogs destroyed because we have been working harder and taking more.

"But we have seen an improvement in the last three months on the streets because I think the word is out there now.

"Every time an attack happens, it isn't quite as bad as it could be. But the chances of something really serious happening is getting greater all the time."

The SPCA can be contacted on 236-7333, the dog wardens are on 234-3642, and the Police animal welfare officer Yvonne Ricca is on 295-0011.