Shock after baby killed by dogs

Residents have been putting flowers and toys outside the pub

Neighbours and residents have been laying flowers outside a pub in Leicester after a five-month-old baby was killed by two Rottweiler dogs.

The girl was savaged in the living quarters of the Rocket pub in the New Parks area. Local MP Patricia Hewitt described the death as appalling.

Police are investigating how the animals came to attack the baby.

The two Rottweilers, which lived at the pub, were put down after the attack on Saturday.

A spokesman for the Leicester Coroner's Office said a post-mortem examination would be carried out on the child on Tuesday, after which an inquest into her death would be opened.

This is the most appalling tragedy and my heart goes out to the parents of this little baby who's died in such appalling circumstances Patricia Hewitt, MP for the area Send us your comments Community in grief

One neighbour, Rose Duke, said: "Those dogs were terrible. If I passed, they would come charging across the roof.

"They frightened the life out of anyone who passed the pub. I would not have trusted them as far as I could throw them. People are in shock."

The girl, who has not been named by police, was taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary on Saturday afternoon where she later died from her injuries following the attack in Stephenson Drive, New Parks.

It is thought her parents had been looking after the pub and the animals while the landlords were on holiday.

The Rottweilers lived at the pub

The attack comes weeks after a boy aged four in Cambridgeshire had 200 stitches after being attacked by an American bulldog.

Chris Lawrence, veterinary director of the Dogs Trust, said a change in the law might be necessary to minimise the possibility of this sort of attack.

He said investigators should be examining "why these dogs behave like this, why the training of the dogs is inadequate, and addressing those sort of issues".

Patricia Hewitt, MP for the area where the attack took place, told BBC Radio Five Live: "This is the most appalling tragedy and my heart goes out to the parents of this little baby who's died in such appalling circumstances."