A mum needed four operations and one skin graft on her arm after her "good friend's" dog mauled her.
The 46-year-old woman from Bootle, who asked to remain anonymous, was at a "good friend's" home on Thursday, June 15 in Litherland when a family member said they thought "the heat had got to the dog" and asked the owner to put it away. After responding saying the Dogue de Bordeaux was "fine" it grabbed the mum's arm and "dragged her to the floor" in an attack that lasted several minutes.
The woman's daughter, who spoke to The ECHO on her behalf, said the owner then "begged her" to not call the police as she was worried about the police "taking her dog".
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She said: "My mum wanted to ring my brother so went to get her phone out and the owner grabbed it and threw it, we still don't know where it is. She said 'don't call the police, they'll take the dog off me'.
"She told her to wrap her arm and go to the doctors the next day. So she held on to her arm and ran out the house, she got to The Railway Pub where two fellas, I don't know who they were, helped her.
"They walked her to my brother's who was just a few streets away and she just collapsed on the sofa."
The mum was taken to hospital by ambulance with her injuries and Merseyside Police were also called. The mum has since undergone four surgeries and one skin graft, where doctors took skin from her leg to put on her arm.
She's now recovering, but her daughter said she is "really bad" and is having issues when seeing dogs in public.
She said: "This was a supposedly good friend's house, she's so upset about that. This never should have happened.
"I was on the phone with her the other day when she was on the bus and a dog got on and I heard her scream. I said 'are you alright mum' and I heard her say to the man 'get that dog away from me, I was attacked by a dog' and he said 'don't worry it's not going to get you.
"It's so hard to see because she loved dogs before, my nan has one and she was going to have it when she got a new house. This just can't happen again, because next time it will be a child and it will kill them."
Merseyside Police confirmed they seized a dog, which currently remains with officers. No arrests have been made at this time.
A spokesperson from the force said: "We can confirm a woman was injured after she was attacked by a dog in Litherland. It was reported at around 12.15am on Thursday 15 June that a woman, aged in her 40s, was attacked by a Dogue de Bordeaux inside a home on Ash Road and needed hospital treatment to an arm injury.
"Officers attended the address to seize the dog and it remains with officers at this time. No arrests have been made, but our enquiries are ongoing into this incident.
"If you have any information, DM @MerPolCC and quote reference 23000518709 or contact @CrimestoppersUK on 0800 555 111."
Merseyside Police this week launched Taking the Lead campaign, which aims to reduce incidents of dog bites in Merseyside. For more information on the campaign and to find out some useful tips and advice on dog ownership, visit the Merseyside Police website.
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