Boy mauled by three rottweilers

A nine-year-old boy is in hospital after an attack by three rottweilers, who chased him into his home.

The pets were meant to be secured in a neighbour's kitchen, but escaped from the house and attacked the boy in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire.

His father prised open one dog's jaws and dragged all three out of the house in Slindon Close, Chesterton.

The victim may need plastic surgery for more than a dozen bite wounds. One of the dogs has been put down.

The boy, who is in hospital, has bite wounds to his face, back, arms and legs.

Since the attack, at about 1700 GMT on Monday, one of the dogs, a male, has been destroyed.

Crown Prosecution Service

A spokesman for Staffordshire Police said the boy was treated at the scene by paramedics, before being taken to the University Hospital of North Staffordshire.

Police are waiting to speak to the boy and a friend who was with him.

"When we have, we will be in a better position to assess what, if anything, happens next - including whether or not the two other dogs should be destroyed.

"We will be submitting a report to the Crown Prosecution Service for advice on whether prosecution is appropriate," he said.

This the latest in a string of dog attacks in recent months.

On New Year's Day, five-year-old Ellie Lawrenson was mauled to death by her uncle's pit bull terrier in St Helens, Merseyside.

Last year five-month-old Cadey-Lee Deacon died after being mauled by two rottweiler guard dogs in the living quarters of a pub in Leicester.