A Dundee woman has told of the ”terrifying” moment when a German Shepherd attacked her, wrapping its teeth around her arm.
Jean Paterson was taking her usual Saturday morning walk on Old Glamis Road when the dog got free of its owner and came bounding towards her.
”A young woman was coming down the road with the German Shepherd and it slipped its lead,” said Jean, who is 61. ”It jumped up and got its teeth around my arm. It didn’t draw blood but you can see the rings of bites on my backside.”
The dog had Jean up against a wall as she tried to remain calm.
She said: ”I was shouting at the woman: ‘Would you get your dog under control and get him off of me?’ She had a struggle and said: ‘He’s just being boisterous.”’
The woman, who is thought to be in her 30s or 40s, managed to get the dog on the lead but it slipped it again and attacked Jean once more.
”It ripped my cardigan and my top and I’ve got a really nasty scratch on my back,” she said.
Jean’s husband heard the commotion and came to her aid as the woman again tried to gain control of her animal but it took off down the road chasing a van.
Visibly shaken, Jean was cleaned up and taken home before she reported the attack to the police.
She said: ”I normally work from home but this morning I’m shaking like a leaf. It was terrifying. I’ve had quite a shake-up.”
Jean was grateful there had not been a child involved.
”The dog ran at me with some force and it nearly knocked me over,” she said. ”Imagine if that had been a kiddie. I didn’t scream and I didn’t look the dog in the eye because I’ve seen enough programmes to know not to do that but I was shouting at the owner.
”A kiddie doesn’t know that. If it had been a child it would have knocked it off its feet and could have got its face.”
A police spokesman confirmed they had received a report of the attack, adding: ”Inquiries are ongoing to trace the owners of the dog.”