Baby Killed By Puppy Unattended For Over An Hour

There are new details about the baby killed by a dog on Monday.  Tulsa Police say the two-month-old baby boy was named Zane Alen Earles.  The News On 6's Emory Bryan reports police say he was unattended for possibly as long as an hour and a half before his body was discovered.

More has been learned about the family involved in the tragedy and also the puppy that police say is to blame.  The little boy was two months old, the dog only slightly older.

Tulsa Police now say the baby's father, 18-year-old Tyler Craig, was not home when the baby died sometime between 8:30 and 10 a.m. Monday morning.  The baby boy was in an elevated wind up child's swing, inside the house, when he was killed.

"The baby's father left the residence about 8 a.m. and the baby was fine.  The baby's grandfather left the home about 8:30 in the morning and he had put the baby in the swing set," said Tulsa Police Officer Leland Ashley.

The medical examiner's report is pending, but police say the evidence clearly shows that the black lab puppy killed the baby.  The dog was euthanized and examined at the Tulsa Animal Shelter, and found to be between two and three months old.

"It was a very young puppy.  We don't know what caused the dog to act the way it did, but all indications are that the dog is responsible for the child's death," said Tulsa Police Officer Leland Ashley.

The baby was identified as two-month-old Zane Alen Earles.  He was born May 28th at the Peggy Helmerich Women's Health Center at Hillcrest Hospital.

His mother is 17-year-old Linzy Earles, who was in the home with the baby's grandmother.  They told detectives they were on the opposite side of the house from the baby when the dog killed the child.

"We're looking at it as possibly just a tragic accident that occurred.  We're not looking to blame anyone or anything like that, but the detectives will investigate this case," said Tulsa Police Officer Leland Ashley.

Court records indicate the mother filed a protective order against the baby's father back in January of 2007.  It was dismissed within just a few days, and that was well before she was pregnant with Zane.

Related story:

7/28/2008  Puppy Kills Baby Boy