A 'dangerously out of control' dog left a seven-year-old boy needing plastic surgery after it attacked him as he played in a friend's garden. Freddie Turner was left with numerous bite marks following the incident.
It is thought the youngster was one of at least three people attacked by the dog which has been described as being like an Alsatian. Police have said two other reports had been made to then of people being bitten by the animal.
One of the other reports is said to have happened just minutes after Freddie was attacked on April 20. The hunt for the owner was still ongoing six days later when the third victim reported he had been bitten.
Freddie's dad Nik told Yorkshire Live how his son had been taken to Pinderfields Hospital following the attack. He needed plastic surgery for his multiple injuries.
Nik said his son was now recovering but said the consequences of the attack were both physical and mental He said: "He keeps reliving it, and if he sees a big dog he tries to hide."
The schoolboy was playing with other children, including his sister, in his friend's garden, when the unaccompanied dog went inside. Nik said the youngsters had run away from it but it had caught Freddie.
He said: "It chased them around the front garden, so they’ve run into the back garden to go into the back of the property, and the dog’s jumped up and grabbed hold of Freddie and pulled him into the middle of the garden and tried tearing him to bits." His eight-year-old sister then called their parents.
"She phoned her mum screaming down the phone," Nik said. He said Freddie's friend's family helped the 7-year-old inside. When Nik arrived, he found Freddie "on the floor bleeding".
"He had to have plastic surgery. He had a lot of puncture wounds to his shoulder and his chest and his back, and he had a big cut underneath his arm which needed stitching back up," said Nik.
Minutes following the attack on Freddie in Holmsley Avenue a 62-year-old man was bitten in Mill Close. Police received a further report a person had been injured by a dog in the area on Tuesday, April 26.
At the time, a spokesperson for West Yorkshire Police told Yorkshire Live: "Police are investigating following reports of two people being bitten by a loose dog in South Kirkby last Wednesday (20 April). Officers were initially called at 5.40pm to a report that a seven-year-old boy had been bitten by a dog, described as an Alsation, in the garden of a property on Holmsley Avenue.
"A further report was received at 5.46pm that a 62-year-old man had been bitten by a dog matching the same description on Mill Close. Both victims required hospital treatment for their injuries.
They added: "It was reported that the dog was taken away by two males following the incident on Mill Close and enquiries are being made to identify the owner of this dog." They added: "Police received a third-party report at 2.17pm on Tuesday, April 26, that a man had been taken to hospital after being bitten by a dog on Mill Lane, South Kirkby.
"The dog was reported to still be in the area. The council dog warden was notified and both the police and dog warden made an extensive area search, with a number of addresses checked, but the dog was not located."
Inspector Nick Drinkall, of Wakefield District Patrol Team, said: “We understand that these incidents are causing concern in the local community and I would like to reassure residents that we are working with the dog warden to locate this dog and identify its owner.
“If anyone believes they have seen this dog they are urged to report this to us as soon as they can. We will not tolerate people allowing their dogs to be dangerously out of control and will take action.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact police by either calling 101 or using 101 Live Chat on the West Yorkshire Police website. Quote crime reference 13220211431.
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