A family dog with no history of violence attacked and killed a newborn baby boy in a small town north of Calgary Wednesday.

RCMP said a husky mauled the infant inside the family's home in Airdrie Wednesday morning.

The baby was rushed to Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary with severe injuries, but doctors there couldn't save him. He died 12 hours later.

"It's just a very tragic incident," RCMP Insp. Tony Hamori told reporters at a news conference Thursday.

The police are not considering any criminal charges in the case.

He refused to reveal details of the attack out of respect for the family. He did, however, say that one of the parents was at home with the baby at the time.

Police did not release any names. Those who know the family told CTV Calgary the baby's parents run a dogsled gear business and were often seen in the neighbourhood with a team of huskies.

RCMP Sgt. Patricia Neely said the dog has never been aggressive or violent before. "This was completely unexpected."

The family also has a 2 1/2 –year-old son and there have never been issues with that child and the dog, police said.

The dog will be quarantined for 10 days while bylaw officers and the family decide whether it should be destroyed.

Darryl Poburan, manager of municipal enforcement with the City of Airdrie, said the attack is unsettling.

"I can't speak for other people, but I know it freaks me out and it's not something you would like to see," he told reporters.

Counselling has been offered to the police officers who attended the horrific scene, Neely said.

"As people we certainly do feel deeply for the family. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and they have our deepest condolences," she said.

While these types of attacks are rare, Hamori cautioned parents to be "vigilant" when pets and animals are around small children.

Dog behaviour expert Allyson Harder said no child should ever be left alone with a dog.

Dogs shouldn't be allowed to approach a baby or chase a child, she told CTV News, noting that not all dogs bark or growl to show aggression.

"A stare, when they stiffen – they're all signals that they're feeling stressed or going into predatory drive," she said.

In 2010, a husky killed a three-week-old baby girl as she sat strapped in her car seat on the floor of a home in Quebec. Her 17-year-old mother has been accused of leaving the child alone with the dog and charged with manslaughter.

With files from The Canadian Press