A one-year-old boy died after a rottweiler snatched him from the arms of another child, police said.
The full horrific details of the attack in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, were revealed as police continued their investigation.
A seven-year-old girl had carried the boy into the yard of his grandparents’ home to stroke the family pet when the attack happened at around 3.30pm on Friday.
Police said the child then alerted the boy’s 16-year-old aunt to the attack and she bravely attempted to wrestle the child from the dog before contacting the emergency services.
He was taken to Pinderfields General Hospital at around 3.40pm with serious injuries but died on Friday night.
Armed officers also attended the address within nine minutes of the emergency call. They found the rottweiler in an agitated state, “clearly representing a potential danger to others”, and the animal was destroyed.
Detective Superintendent Steve Payne, who is leading the investigation, said: “Clearly our thoughts go out to the family at this tragic time. They are understandably devastated by what has happened and are being supported by specially-trained officers.
“The circumstances of the incident are still unfolding and we are speaking to the children that were present at the scene. The boy who died was staying at his grandparents’ house during the Christmas holidays.”
Det Supt Payne added that the dog was a two-and-a-half-year-old female rottweiler, which the family had owned for about six months.
“Although the dog lived in the yard of the premises, it had interacted with members of the family including children, and another dog and cat at the house, and had showed no previous signs of any aggression,” he said.
