Dogs Attack Children Outside Home As Mother Desperately Tries Protecting Them

A three-year-old boy was injured after he and his elder brother were attacked by two dogs in the front yard of their home in the Australian city of Beechboro on Monday.

Kate Johnson, the mother of the two children, said she was walking to the car to take her 5-year-old son, Levi, to school when the two canines, a pit bull cross and a rottweiler cross, appeared and started attacking them just outside their front door. Johnson said she was desperately trying to protect Levi and her other son, 3-year-old Sebastian.

Recalling the incident she said, “On this particular day they were so angry and vicious I had no chance of escaping. I had no time to run back into the house, no time to run into the car. They just grabbed us — it was pretty terrifying.”

Sebastian was rushed to a nearby hospital where he received stitches to his leg. His mother too underwent treatment after she received deep punctures to her arm.

“I think it’s the emotional trauma that is the most damaging,” she said, adding that the injuries would have been worse had the dogs not run away within seconds.

Meanwhile, officials seized the two dogs and were investigating the incident.

“Any further action will be pending the outcomes of the investigation. The City’s highest priority is to ensure the safety of its residents,” City of Swan chief executive Mike Foley said.

The incident comes less than two months after an 11-year-old boy was left with serious facial injuries after being attacked by a dog in Melbourne. The victim was in the backyard of his home when the canine, a Doberman, attacked him. Emergency services rushed the boy to a nearby hospital while the dog was temporarily secured in the backyard before it was taken away.

"In a tragic backyard attack, an 11-year-old child was mauled on the face by a family Doberman. Our thoughts are with the family of the injured child and we wish the child a speedy recovery. Council animal management officers were called to assist police. The dog is not registered. Council will continue to offer Victoria Police ongoing assistance in the investigation,” said Kelvin Walsh, the Brimbank Council's city development director, adding that the canine was put down.