‘Next time it could be a child’
Irene was out walking when a dog bolted towards her, sinking its teeth into her leg
A woman who was attacked by a dog, that leapt off the back of a ute stopped at traffic lights, wants the dog to be found and put down.
Irene, who did not want her last name used for fear of retribution, was out for a walk in Hamilton on Tuesday with husband John and poodle Lily, which she said was a regular nightly occurrence. As they approached the intersection of Heaphy Tce and Brooklyn Rd, Irene, 66, saw a dog leap out of the back window of a ute parked at the lights, bolting towards the trio.
‘‘Both of us saw this massive dog [a pitbull crossed with a rottweiler] come hurtling towards us.’’
She grabbed Lily, throwing her into her husband’s arms, then saw the dog had latched on to her leg, just above her knee, with its teeth sinking into her thigh.
John, 68, said he held Lily above his head to try to keep her out of reach of the dog.
Emergency services were called and Irene was taken to hospital where she had to have surgery under general anaesthetic to clean out the wound. ‘‘It was a big ordeal.
‘‘It is OK for me but imagine a child?’’ The dog’s owner approached her straight away and apologised but, when she made it clear she wanted the dog put down, he left.
‘‘He said, ‘I know my dog, I sleep with it . . . it is like a child to me’.
‘‘I said don’t compare this dog to a child.’’
The man also said he was aware of the baby that was killed by a dog in Enderley recently, as he lived in the area.
Irene said she had no doubt the dog was coming to kill her dog.
The vehicle was described as an older style navy/dark blue ute with four doors and an open tray, and the dog looked like a pitbull crossed with a rottweiler, of solid build with a brindle coat, she said.
She wanted to make people aware this dog was in the community and to be vigilant, as she said the attack happened ‘‘so fast’’.
‘‘You can be innocently walking and a dog can come out . . . and attack you.’’
After reading about a recent dog attack in O¯ po¯tiki, she said she felt compelled to speak out, as she had bounced back from this attack but a child might not be so lucky.
Two children were badly injured in the attack in O¯ po¯tiki, with one having an ear almost severed.
Irene said she was feeling ‘‘pretty good really’’ but she was still fired up about the incident.
‘‘I want the dog put down.
‘‘Next time it could be a child.’’ They had been walking their dog for many years and John said that over time they had seen owner behaviour slipping, with fewer leads and collars used. Irene appealed to the owner of the dog to come forward. All his details had been passed on to police.
She said they were overwhelmed with support from people at the scene, with a woman in a car behind the ute taking a photo of the registration and giving a full statement to police.
Emergency services personnel and staff at Waikato Hospital also made the incident easier to deal with, Irene said. ‘‘I would like to [thank] the wonderful people who stopped to help me.’’
A police spokeswoman said their inquiries were complete but they had notified Animal Control and were assisting them with their investigation.
‘‘I want the dog put down.’’
Irene, dog attack victim