[An unusual case of extensive cadaver ingestion by a domestic dog]

There are only a few reports on cases in which the body of a human who died unnoticed in a house was destructed by a dog. The presented case seems to be unusual in that the extent of destruction was severe and the distribution of injuries was different from that reported in the literature. A 59-year-old man was found dead naked in a room, the cause of death being ischemic heart disease. The lower part of the body was lying in a so-called kotatsu. Wounds were confined to the upper part of the body. The head was skeletonized. The anterior thorax was missing. What was different in our case from previous ones was that the genitals were spared from destruction; the kotatsu frame may have prevented the dog from approaching this region. The extensive destruction within the short period of about 3 days may be explained by the fact that the victim was naked when he died.