4-Year Old Severely Injured By Dog Grandparents Watching

4-Year Receives 80 Stitches after Bullmastiff Attack
Agawam, MA - A 4-year-old boy, badly bitten in the face last week by a bullmastiff, is recovering at home. Gilbert Hall, the boy's grandfather, had been watching the 150-pound dog for an friend when the boy's father, George Sidor entered the home with his son. Sidor had been petting the dog when it lunged for his son, biting him in the back, and as the boy turned, it bit him in the face.

Halls said that, "the dog was going for his eyes." Sidor managed to pull the dog off his son, and the boy was taken to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield where he received 80 stitches. Georgie is expected to have his stitches removed today. The plastic surgeon is pleased with the boy's progress but he still suffers nightmares and is afraid to return to his grandparents' home.

Hall said the dog, up until the attack, had been very friendly. He adds that "Everybody thought he was fine. It was a good thing we had been in the room at the time, you never know what might have happened." Hall said the attack was the worst day of his, and other family members' lives.

In Massachusetts, there is an effort to create a statewide, online dangerous dog registry. Information on each dangerous dog would be available to the public and include: a photograph, the name of the animal and a physical description, the dangerous acts it has committed, owner information and associated trial docket information.

Labels: Grandparents