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'Berserk' dog which savaged woman dies after being shot by police using Taser gun
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 2:45 PM on 8th November 2010
Attack: An American bulldog like this one attacked the woman
A pet dog which attacked a women leaving her with severe injuries has died after it was shot by police with a Taser gun. The American bulldog went berserk and bit the 30-year-old several times as she walked it along a seafront promenade. She suffered a severely broken left arm and multiple bite wound in the attack in the Hampshire seaside town of Lee-on-the-Solent.
Police officers chased the crazed animal with dog poles as it ran off towards a street packed with shoppers. But they failed to calm it down and were forced to shoot it with a Taser gun, which can discharge up to 50,000 volts. The electric shock subdued the dog but it later died on the way to the vets, where it was due to be put down.
The woman has not been named. She was walking her friend's dog, which is not classified as a banned or dangerous breed. It became aggressive for no apparent reason and bit her several times. Paramedics and an emergency doctor raced to the scene and worked for 45 minutes to stabilise her at the roadside.
She was then taken to Southampton General hospital for emergency surgery, where she remains in intensive care. Hampshire Constabulary sent a dog handler and team of officers to find the dog and take it to the vets, but it died in the back of a police van on the way.
Sally Adams, from Hampshire Constabulary, confirmed the attack happened shortly after 6pm on Thursday. She said: 'The dog was still behaving aggressively when officers found it, and obviously their absolute priority was to ensure the dog didn't attack anyone else.
Disabling 50,000 volt shock: Police used Tasers to stun the dog after fears it would attack more people
Attack: The incident occurred on Lee-on-the-Solent promenade in Hampshire. The woman, who suffered severe fractures and multiple teeth wounds, has been moved to Southampton General hospital
'They first tried to catch it with a dog pole but it broke free from the noose and tried to run from officers. 'That's when officers discharged a Taser to subdue it before catching it with a pole again. 'The dog was then put into a police van to be taken to a vet but it died before it arrived.
'The owner had given consent for the animal to be put down.' It is not known why the dog died on the way to the vets and there were no visible injuries when it arrived. Hampshire Constabulary are still gathering evidence to establish what caused the dog to attack the woman.
