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On the temporal onset of postmortem animal scavenging

1997; Elsevier BV; Volume: 89; Issue: 1-2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s0379-0738(97)00112-6

1872-6283

Markus A. Rothschild, V. Schneider,

Yersinia bacterium, plague, ectoparasites research

During an initial investigation, postmortem scavenging by pets (dogs, cats, etc.), which sometimes occurs, may sometimes lead to the suspicion that a crime has been committed. In most cases however, the death was due to natural causes. The time of the onset of postmortem scavenging by animals can often not be exactly determined because the interval between the time of death and discovery of the body is usually considerable. In this paper we deal with the case of a 31-year-old man, who committed suicide by shooting himself in the mouth and whose face exhibited extensive postmortem animal bite marks caused by the victim's Alsatian, which must have occurred during the 45 minute period between the fatal shot and the discovery of the body. Hunger, frequently discussed as a reason for postmortem animal mutilating injuries, could not have been responsible for the injuries in this case. In the room where the victim was found, there was also a bowl with sufficient dog food and while being transported to an animal sanctuary in a police van the dog vomited about 400 g of dog food as well as human tissue.