Triceratops
February 9th, 2009, 11:50 AM
Six people, including two children, were injured when two dogs went on the rampage today.
Four people were taken to hospital with bite wounds after the attack by two Alsatians in Filton Avenue, Bristol, at around 9am.
Great Western Ambulance Service (GWAS) said a fifth victim took themselves to hospital while a sixth was treated at scene by an off-duty paramedic.
None of the injuries was reported as serious.
A six-year-old girl was taken to Frenchay Hospital after being bitten on her left side, along with a 15-year-old schoolboy, who was bitten on the arm.
The girl's 45-year-old mother was bitten on the forearm and bicep as she tried to fend the dogs off her daughter.
A 34-year-old woman was also taken to hospital with puncture wounds.
GWAS said both animals were captured after the attack.
Four ambulances and a rapid response vehicle were sent to the scene.
A spokesman for Avon and Somerset Police confirmed that a 30-year-old man from Bristol was arrested following the incident, and was being held for questioning under the Dangerous Dogs Act.
The spokesman said the victims were all believed to be pedestrians, had no connection to the dogs, and were attacked near the junction of Filton Avenue and Shakespeare Avenue.
He said: "At 9.11am we received reports of two German Shepherds running loose, barking and trying to attack passers-by.
"They were captured at 9.43am. While they were running loose they bit a number of people - we believe around six or seven.
"Dog wardens were called to the scene, and the animals were taken to the kennels.
"A 30-year-old man from Bristol was arrested in connection with the incident and is currently in police custody."
It is believed the two dogs escaped their home in Shakespeare Avenue and attacked two women outside the property.
Tenants at the house where the dogs are kept, who were identified by neighbours, refused to comment today and threw snow and a chair at reporters and photographers.
The dog-owners are thought to keep three Staffordshire bull terriers - as well as the two Alsatians - at their small, terrace home.
Neighbours living along the road saw the two dogs attack a deaf woman, biting her arm.
The deaf woman was taken in by a neighbour, and had to write her name and address on a piece of paper because she could not communicate verbally.
The 18-year-old woman who took her in, who asked not to be named, said: "I was in bed and heard screaming and looked out the window and saw the dogs.
"The lady, who is deaf, started screaming and panicking. She collapsed and so we brought her into the house and called the paramedics.
"She was hysterical, she had two deep cuts and there was blood everywhere. She could write so she told us where she lived and asked us to call her husband.
"I knew she was deaf because I work in a local shop and she comes in so I know that people would not be able to understand her."
Asked if the dogs had caused trouble before, she said: "They're out all the time and they're terrible. They're about a year old and quite big, they come up to my hip."
Another neighbour, Sharon Abbott, said: "I've never seen the dogs out before but I know they get out. You never know what dogs are going to do, so it's good they've been caught."
Four people were taken to hospital with bite wounds after the attack by two Alsatians in Filton Avenue, Bristol, at around 9am.
Great Western Ambulance Service (GWAS) said a fifth victim took themselves to hospital while a sixth was treated at scene by an off-duty paramedic.
None of the injuries was reported as serious.
A six-year-old girl was taken to Frenchay Hospital after being bitten on her left side, along with a 15-year-old schoolboy, who was bitten on the arm.
The girl's 45-year-old mother was bitten on the forearm and bicep as she tried to fend the dogs off her daughter.
A 34-year-old woman was also taken to hospital with puncture wounds.
GWAS said both animals were captured after the attack.
Four ambulances and a rapid response vehicle were sent to the scene.
A spokesman for Avon and Somerset Police confirmed that a 30-year-old man from Bristol was arrested following the incident, and was being held for questioning under the Dangerous Dogs Act.
The spokesman said the victims were all believed to be pedestrians, had no connection to the dogs, and were attacked near the junction of Filton Avenue and Shakespeare Avenue.
He said: "At 9.11am we received reports of two German Shepherds running loose, barking and trying to attack passers-by.
"They were captured at 9.43am. While they were running loose they bit a number of people - we believe around six or seven.
"Dog wardens were called to the scene, and the animals were taken to the kennels.
"A 30-year-old man from Bristol was arrested in connection with the incident and is currently in police custody."
It is believed the two dogs escaped their home in Shakespeare Avenue and attacked two women outside the property.
Tenants at the house where the dogs are kept, who were identified by neighbours, refused to comment today and threw snow and a chair at reporters and photographers.
The dog-owners are thought to keep three Staffordshire bull terriers - as well as the two Alsatians - at their small, terrace home.
Neighbours living along the road saw the two dogs attack a deaf woman, biting her arm.
The deaf woman was taken in by a neighbour, and had to write her name and address on a piece of paper because she could not communicate verbally.
The 18-year-old woman who took her in, who asked not to be named, said: "I was in bed and heard screaming and looked out the window and saw the dogs.
"The lady, who is deaf, started screaming and panicking. She collapsed and so we brought her into the house and called the paramedics.
"She was hysterical, she had two deep cuts and there was blood everywhere. She could write so she told us where she lived and asked us to call her husband.
"I knew she was deaf because I work in a local shop and she comes in so I know that people would not be able to understand her."
Asked if the dogs had caused trouble before, she said: "They're out all the time and they're terrible. They're about a year old and quite big, they come up to my hip."
Another neighbour, Sharon Abbott, said: "I've never seen the dogs out before but I know they get out. You never know what dogs are going to do, so it's good they've been caught."