Woman ‘covered in blood’ after ‘powerful’ dog savages family pet in front of boy

A MAN has described how he and others went to shield a mother and her young son from a loose Staffordshire Bull Terrier type dog last night.

The animal savaged the mother and son’s small pet dog, in yet another dog attack in Limerick, overnight.

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The eye-witness, who did not wish to be named, said it was a “lucky” no people were injured in the “traumatic” attack.

The pitbull died after being restrained by two other “brave” men who jumped in to assist the women and child, the witness said.

It is the third known serious dog attack in Limerick in the last month, coming in the wake of the death of Nicole Morey, who was killed by her Staffordshire Bull Terrier dogs in Fedamore on June 4th.

Just days before that, serious facial injuries were caused to eight-year old Jackson Flynn when he was bitten by a dog in a park on May 29th.

Gardaí said they were investigating last night’s dog attack which occurred around 7pm at the popular Castletroy Greenway walking and cycling amenity.

The eye-witness said he came upon a woman and a little boy who had been out walking their pet dog that was being attacked by a “pit-bull or staffy type dog” and the woman was “covered in blood” from her own dog’s injuries, as she and another passer-by tried to separate the dogs.

The witness said the loose pit-bull “chewed through” the other dog’s leash and had bitten “chunks” of flesh from its little body.

The witness said a male by-passer “jumped on the (pit-bull) dog to pull (it) off the lady’s dog”.

“When I arrived, the woman was quite distressed and covered in blood. Her dog had been viciously attacked and it’s back leg skin was missing, there was chunks taken out of its body,” the witness said.

“The woman was quite visibly upset, in hysterics, and I just picked her up off the ground and kind of moved her at this stage. The (other) man had the other dog under control, kind of holding the dog down.

“Another passerby who was cycling, jumped off his bike and put his arms around the man on the ground and the dog and restrained dog even more.”

The eye-witness described the attacking dog as “a powerful dog”.

Garda sources confirmed the attacking dog that was roaming loose in the area was a “pitbull” type dog.

“I walked the lady away from the incident, I said to her that she just needed to go home and get out of the area, just in case the (pitbull) got free again,” said the witness.

“It was quite a strong, powerful dog. And luckily, it had actually chewed through the lead of the other dog in the struggle,” the witness told local radio station, Limerick’s Live 95fm in a separate interview.

“What was quite worrying was the area was full of young kids just playing in the sunshine.”

The first man to respond “just threw himself into this incident and he could have been savaged”. 

The witness described: “You know, it was an act of bravery from him, it was incredible, it really was. He put himself in danger, it was brutal.

“The other dog was a savagely injured. It was like an older Bichon Frisé/poodle type dog.

My main concern is that a dog will attack me or my dog or my kids. Everyday you will see at least four dogs here off a leash.”

Local woman

“What worried me is that I called the gardai as did a couple of other people, and the Gardai didn’t arrive for over an hour after the incident was phoned in. I called the dog warden and got no answer.

“The gardai were called three or four times and only that the dog that attacked was deceased at this stage, it could have been much worse.

“For such a serious attack and what has gone on in recent times in Limerick, I would have thought the (Garda) response time would have been quicker than that.

I’m sure there are other things going on but… I was speaking to an (999) operator who was quite upset as well on the phone when I was telling her what was happening.

“The (pit-bull) was wearing a collar with a telephone number of the owner on it so I’m sure the gardai will be in contact with them.

“It absolutely is an owners responsibility to keep their dog in check and on a lead, but we were there for the bones of an hour and nobody came looking for that dog.

“It might have escaped out of a back garden and the owner might not have been home – but a dog of that size should have no way of getting out.

“You could see the damage it could have done (to people), it could have been so much worse.

“This just can’t keep happening. You know, we’ve had too many big stories and shocking incidents recently like this, it can’t keep happening.

‘INCREDIBLE ACT OF BRAVERY’

“Under no circumstances should a dog with that amount of power be out, roaming free, to cause such damage to another animal or person.”

The witness said it was “an incredible act of bravery” that the two other men restrained the pitbull and that “it was traumatic for everyone”.

They added: “There must have been fifteen to twenty kids, young kids, playing in the area at the time. I didn’t get a wink of sleep last night, it was not something nice to come upon, but this definitely needs to be highlighted.”

When asked for comment a Garda spokeswoman replied: “Gardaí were alerted to an incident involving two dogs at a residential estate in Castletroy, on Tuesday evening, a dog which was in the control of its owner was attacked by a second dog.

“The offending dog was restrained by a number of persons in the area.

“No persons were injured during the course of the incident. The dog which was attacked was seriously injured.

“Investigations are ongoing in relation to this matter. The offending dog is now deceased.”

Blood and scratch marks could be seen on the pavement where the dog attack occurred.

Local TD Kieran O’Donnell, who attended at the scene overnight after he was contacted by concerned residents said: “I know that Gardai are carrying out investigations, it’s something that I’m very conscious of – that people want to feel safe and they want to ensure that dogs are kept under control.

“As a TD in this area, I want to ensure that people feel safe, that dogs are kept under control, and that everyone can go about to daily lives without fear.”

Deputy O’Donnell said Minister Humphreys was today meeting an expert group she had set up on the issue of dog control chaired by former Garda Deputy Commissioner John Twomey and that “whatever recommendations that come forward to the minister, she will take those very seriously, to ensure that we have a society where dogs are kept under control and people feel safe”.

Deputy O’Donnell said owners of dogs are required to “keep them under control, and have the dog on a leash”.

“And that means that they can do their normal activities with their dogs, but anyone they encounter in public will have to feel safe, and that’s the prerequisite – It’s all about human safety.”

A local woman said the area was “not safe” as there were lots of dogs not on leashes.

“My main concern is that a dog will attack me or my dog or my kids. Everyday you will see at least four dogs here off a leash.

“Nobody wants to come down here and see blood like this.”