'He thought it was tug of war': Petition to save dog which bit off boy's hand
Almost 200,000 people have signed a petition to save a dog from being euthanised after it bit off a child’s hand.
The four-year-old Utah child placed a sock on his arm before he put it in a gap between the ground and a solid vinyl fence in his backyard last Sunday.
One of two huskies next door then bit off the boy’s entire hand and two to three inches of his arm, Layton Fire Battalion Chief Jason Cook said, adding that it was the dog’s first reported bite incident.
The boy’s father tried to limit the bleeding and comfort his son until emergency workers arrived. A helicopter flew the boy to a hospital in Salt Lake City, where he underwent emergency surgery.
The two huskies, named Polar and Bear, were placed into quarantine following the attack, with authorities saying they are still determining whether Bear will be put down.
While the child continues his recovery, a petition made by close friend Jessica Nusz, to save the dogs has now received thousands of signatures.
“Bear, who was playing with what he thought was a toy, he bit down too hard and didn’t see that there was a child on the other side of the fence,” the petition reads.
“With him being a dog, he thought it was a game of tug of war and he bit down too hard and took a lower portion of his arm.
“This situation is unfortunate on both sides.
“There are fears that Bear might be put down and he doesn’t deserve to be put down for this freak accident.”
A GoFundMe, aiming to raise $7,000, has also been started to cover the court fees.
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