A blue heeler named Axle escaped a crocodile’s jaws during a Casuarina Beach attack

‘A splash, then screaming’: A pup named Axle is lucky to be alive after a croc attack at a busy Darwin beach during the Easter long weekend. Watch the vid of the croc sighting.

A dog is lucky to be alive after escaping the jaws of a saltwater croc at a busy Darwin beach over the Easter long weekend.

One witness to the attack said the pup’s owner could be heard screaming as the two metre saltie sat in the waves just a metre from shore at Casuarina Beach on Monday night.

Reports of croc sightings in the area had emerged earlier in the day, so the witness – who wished to remain anonymous – went to see if they could spot the reptile for themselves.

Croc at Casuarina Beach on Easter Monday. Picture: Supplied

“For about 15 minutes we walked up and down the beach and couldn’t see anything other than lots of other people and dog walkers,” they said.

“We’d just given up and turned back to the carpark when we heard a big splash – (we) turned back around and the dog (was) in the water with the croc.

“There was a woman screaming, and the dog somehow broke free and bolted up the beach.”

A crowd gathered near the saltie, which remained in the waves before slowly heading towards the mouth of Rapid Creek.

The 2m saltie sat in the waves after taking a bite out of Axle the Blue Heeler. Picture: Supplied

After tracking down the dog, a blue heeler named Axle, the witness said the owner was “rather distressed”.

“The dog had a couple of puncture wounds in his side but he seemed okay,” they said.

“She didn’t have a car so we gave them a lift to the vet, I heard from her today and the dog’s all good and on some antibiotics, so it’s pretty lucky.

“I wanted to see a croc but as soon as this happened I thought ‘Oh no, are we going to witness this traumatic event’.”

Just last week the witness, a relative newcomer to the Territory, promised themselves they would get a crocodile tattoo if they managed to spot one in the wild.

“I think I have to do it now – maybe on my side in honour of the dog’s puncture wounds.”

Fifty-seven saltwater crocs have been captured in the Territory in 2024, and 1184 have been caught since 2020.

The government is currently consulting on whether to reintroduce culling to bring down croc numbers.