Max had been hand-raised from just weeks old by Trina and Shane Logan because the alpaca had lost its parents.

Max was beloved by neighbourhood children who regularly came up to meet the alpaca or take a photo.

A cheeky creature, Mr Logan said Max was known to collect the mail and eat it and knock on the house’s back door when he was hungry.

Unfortunately, the alpaca could not recover from its injuries.

Following the attack on Friday, the two dogs involved were handed over to Junee Shire Council after intervention from neighbours and five passing police officers.

Council’s corporate and community services director Grant Johnson confirmed the animals had been surrendered and would be put down.

Mr Johnson said both dog and cat owners had serious responsibilities for caring for their pets and warned there were significant fines that could be imposed.

He said if a dog escapes its yard, owners can be fined, they can also be fined up to $500 if they attack or menace people or other animals.

“Dogs do get out, they can find a hidey-hole or jump the fence, some dogs will have separation anxiety if they are away from their owners,” he said.

Mr Johnson said animals had to be on a lead and under effective control in public spaces, unless they were at the declared off-leash areas on Kemp Street and Broadway.

Council can also impose fines for failure to register or microchip animals – both cats and dogs. Mr Johnson said microchips made it easier for animals to be returned to owners if they were picked up by council’s ranger.

“It comes down to the owner’s responsibility,” Mr Johnson said.

“Owners will be fined for breaches if a dog gets out and harasses or charges people.

“There are a lot of options, they can be declared dangerous, which increases the fines and requirements for keeping the animals.”

Dogs that are declared dangerous have far more onerous requirements, including child-proof enclosures, reporting and use of muzzles.

Fines for dogs declared as dangerous can rise to $22,000 and potentially include jail terms. The dogs that attacked the alpaca were not among the state’s dangerous breed list.