American staffordshires are NSW’s most attack-prone dog – but there may be more to the data

There were 941 attacks by American staffordshires (Amstaffs) in NSW in 2024, with 5,023 of the breed registered, meaning an attack for about every one in five dogs. Photograph: Arterra Picture Library/Alamy

American staffordshires (Amstaffs) registered in New South Wales had the highest rate of attacking a child, adult or other dog in 2024, statistics show.

But experts warn the data may not show the full picture because dog breeds can be wrongly identified – sometimes deliberately – and often not identified at all.