A four-year-old Ukrainian child was recovering in hospital in Faro this week from head wounds after being attacked by the family dog.
The little girl was bitten by a Dogo Argentino, which is considered to be a dangerous breed in Portugal.
A hospital spokesperson told the Algarve Resident that the child was recovering satisfactorily in the paediatric ward but could not provide further details.
The incident took place in the family’s house in the Millennium Golf Residence, a luxury condominium in Vilamoura, last Sunday at 1.50pm. The GNR told the Algarve Resident that the child was with the parents at the time of the attack. “We were told by the parents that there had been no interaction with the dog and that the animal suddenly lunged and bit the child,” said the GNR spokesperson.
The dog had apparentlyalready bitten the little girl’s nine-year-old sister on an earlier occasion as she was watching television with her parents, it has been revealed.
The animal was placed in quarantine in the municipal kennels in Loulé to await a vet’s report and the GNR confirmed that the dog will “very likely” be put down.
The Dogo Argentino is one of the seven breeds of dog considered dangerous in Portugal. About a year ago, a dog of the same breed caused the death of an 18-month-old toddler in Porto.
About 5,000 dangerous breed dogs are registered in Portugal but animal defence organisations claim that, in the majority of cases, it is the owners and not the dogs that are to blame for the animals’ aggressive behaviour.
