Pictured: The young boy attacked by huge dog while riding his bike
A three-year-old boy has had part of his ear re-attached after being mauled by a dog near Newcastle.
Tom Higgins was riding his bike at Mayfield Tuesday night, when a Great Dane escaped through an open gate and lunged.
He'd been collecting cans for recycling when he was mauled by a stranger's dog.
Almost twice Tom's size, Rossco the Great Dane ran through an open gate and took the little boy by the neck.
His owner said the animal just doesn't like bikes.
Bleeding from the ear, the toddler was taken to hospital with injuries to his face, neck and back, and had surgery Wednesday morning.
While Tom is expected to make a full recovery, it could be a long and painful process.
Doctors are most concerned about infection from the bacteria that could have made its way into the little boy's system during the attack.
Rossco will likely be destroyed.
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Detective Acting Inspector Jeffrey Little told reporters the incident was traumatic for the family and the dog owner as well.
“I'd say everybody is lucky in this circumstance because it hasn't ended up worse.
"This is a timely reminder that anyone who owns a dangerous dog is in fact liable if that dog bites anybody or attacks any person."
Tom's attack is the third savage attack on a child since Saturday.
In a separate incident, one-year-old Kamillah Jones was killed after being mauled by a Rottweiler at Inverell in northern New South Wales, on Saturday.
The following day, a 10-year-old Melbourne girl was injured by her pet dog.
Last year, there were about 3430 dog attacks in New South Wales. More than 300 involving children.
