Dog bursts from crate and bites 8-year-old boy in the face, California officials say

An 8-year-old boy suffered serious injuries to his face when a dog mauled him at his aunt’s Indio home, California authorities told news outlets

“This dog busted out of its kennel or crate somehow, and ran straight for the child and attacked him,” John Welsh, public information officer with Riverside County Animal Services, told the Desert Sun.

The boy’s grandmother and another woman pulled the dog off the child in the attack at 3 p.m. Monday, Sept. 19, the publication reported.

The 8-year-old’s father took him to a hospital with serious injuries to his face, and the boy was flown to another hospital for treatment, KTLA reported.

He was visiting his aunt’s home when the attack took place, KABC reported. No information on his medical condition was available.

The dog’s owner surrendered it to authorities to be euthanized, KTLA reported. Officials described it as a 2-year-old pit bull.

Indio is a city of 90,000 near Joshua Tree National Park, about 125 miles east of Los Angeles.

This story was originally published September 20, 2022 at 10:29 AM with the headline "Dog bursts from crate and bites 8-year-old boy in the face, California officials say."