Corgi left with life threatening injuries and '£20k vet bill' after XL Bully attack in Derby park
A Corgi has been left with life-threatening injuries, after being attacked by an "out of control" XL Bully in a Derby park.
Hannah Smith, 33, from Sinfin, said she would usually walk her two Corgis with her four-week-old newborn around Redwood Park.
But on Wednesday 13 December, she opted to stay at home and her mother offered to walk the two dogs - Monty and Darwin.
She said: "The XL had spotted my mum and lunged from its walker, slipping the unsuitable lead before heading straight to Darwin and attacking him for 15 minutes. The dog walker just stood there screaming, they didn't know what to do and most definitely could not control the dog."
Members of the public rushed to the incident to help Dawin the Corgi, with one person giving their child's pram to put the dog into so he could be pushed to the car and taken to the vets.
Darwin suffered life-threatening injuries and spent the night in intensive care at the vets.
She says her vets bill will total up to £20,000 and is now trying to contact the XL Bully owner.
Hannah continued: "They didn't know if he was going to make it or not. By some miracle, he has and is currently classed as being stable. His brother Monty is very upset after seeing this."
Derbyshire Police said in a statement issued following the attack: "The force was called to reports of a dog having been attacked by another dog on Sinfin Moor Park. The attacked dog, a Corgi, suffered life-threatening injuries and is being cared for by vets.
"The dog that was said to have attacked the Corgi, reported to have been an XL Bully type, was seized by officers and is now in a specialist kennel facility. The owner of the dog was spoken to at the scene and enquiries are ongoing into the incident. No arrests have been made."
Hannah said that despite the traumatic events, she does not believe that the XL Bully is the only dog at fault, saying "it could have been any breed of dog".
She added: "The biggest thing that I would love to come out of this horrible event is more awareness on how you should control your dog. The person walking the dog was in no way prepared to handle it, she had a flimsy lead and stayed on the sidelines as people rushed to help.
"This incident was 100 per cent preventable if the owner was equipped and ready. It's all good saying that the dogs will need a muzzle but if owners are not ready to take care of the animals and pay the money for training and equipment then it will continue to happen.
"The only advice that is available when it comes to breaking up a dog fight is 'never break up a dog fight', which I think is silly. These animals are our babies and we will always try to step in, but no one knows what to do in that situation."
Hannah now finds herself trying to contact the owner as she is faced with a vet bill amounting to "between £10,000 and £20,000".
She also commends the police for their help with the incident, thanking them for taking the case "very seriously".
Earlier this year, the Government confirmed from December 31 2023, XL Bully types will be added to the list of dangerous dogs that are banned in the UK.
Under the new rules, it will be illegal to breed, sell, exchange, gift, rehome, abandon or allow the dogs to stray in England & Wales, the Government said.
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