Video: Pittsburgh zookeepers 'tried everything they could' to save boy from wild dogs It was reported the child was three years old and was on an outing with his mother on Sunday when he fell over a railing and off a mesh barrier into the area where 11 of the animals - known as African painted dogs - were on display. Zoo keepers cleared some of the dogs away and tried to frighten away others by firing darts at them but were unable to reach the child until after police shot and killed one especially aggressive dog, a local newspaper reported. Barbara Baker, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium said: "The keepers tried everything they could do. They responded immediately when vistors alerted them to the fact that a child was in the yard. The veterinarians arrived and tried to scare the dogs away from the young child with darts and were unsuccessful in doing that. African painted dogs are an endangered species native to sub-Saharan Africa and their scientific name, Lycaon pictus, means painted wolf. Police are still trying to determine how the child got over the railing.