A three-month-old girl who died after being bitten by a dog has been remembered by her family as bringing them “meaning and purpose every day”. Maggie-May Ann Moody was just one day shy of her three-month birthday when she suffered a fatal head injury at a home in Dormanstown, Redcar and Cleveland, on 9 April 2026. In a tribute released through Cleveland Police, her family said she had changed them “in so many ways” and that they had been “robbed of a beautiful lifetime and memories with her”.
“Maggie changed us in so many ways,” the family’s statement read. “She was everything to us. She gave us meaning and purpose every day, and we feel empty. As parents and a family, we have been robbed of a beautiful lifetime and memories with her. As a family we were all present with Maggie at the hospital and we never left her side. Her brother and sister adored little Maggie and will miss her dearly, as they had plans for the rest of their lives. Our lives will never be the same again, she will always be in our hearts.”
The infant was born on 10 January 2026 in Newcastle. Two days after her death, she was formally identified by her grandmother, Michelle Scott. An inquest into her death opened at Teesside Coroner’s Court on Tuesday, 21 April, where the provisional cause of death was recorded as “head injury”. The inquest has been adjourned.
Emergency services were called to a property on Hardale Grove, Dormanstown, shortly after 1:30 pm on the day of the incident following reports of concern for a child’s welfare. The North East Ambulance Service dispatched three ambulance crews, a clinical team leader and a duty officer. Upon arrival, officers found that Maggie had already died.
Two dogs were present at the address. Initial accounts suggest the animals were in the rear garden before entering the room where Maggie was located. Armed police destroyed one dog at the scene on the street; neighbours reported hearing a single gunshot. A second dog recovered from the property was later destroyed. Witnesses described the dogs as “pocket bully-type dogs”, possibly crossbreeds, with one neighbour saying a dog was “grey and white in colour”. A specialist officer assessed the animals and they were deemed “not to be a prohibited type of dog” under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
A 31-year-old woman was treated in hospital for an arm injury sustained from a dog bite during the incident.
Three people were arrested in connection with the death. A 45-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control causing injury resulting in death. A 31-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of child neglect and being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control resulting in death. A 36-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control resulting in death. All three have since been released on conditional bail. Cleveland Police have confirmed that none of those arrested are connected to the family of Maggie-May Ann Moody.
Police are appealing for anyone with information, mobile phone footage, or doorbell or dashcam footage to come forward.
