Young girl seriously injured as neighbours rush to stop family dog mauling
A young girl has suffered serious injuries after being attacked by the family's pet dog in Melbourne's southeast while at home with her sister.
The sisters, aged 7 and 10, are believed to have been home alone at the Berwick house on Sunday.
At about 8pm, the 10-year-old was attacked by the dog and the alarm was raised when two neighbours heard screaming.
"I tried to open the door and when I did the young girl was banging on the door screaming," neighbour Jimmy Baird said.
"The dog tried to get through the door, going off its head.
"The other fella went to the other door to distract the dog.
"We got the other daughter and when we brought her outside we realised what injuries she had - Lacerations all over her body and her ear was obviously badly damaged."
The exact circumstances leading up to the attack remain unknown.
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The girl was taken to hospital in a serious condition. Latest reports say her condition has stabilised after suffering wounds to her head and face.
Local council rangers have seized the dog, reported to be a bullmastiff.
It follows another attack on Saturday in which a one-year-old girl died following a mauling by a dog in the yard of her home in the rural NSW town of Inverell.
Despite paramedics best efforts, little Kamillah Jones died on the way to the local hospital.
