Users and staff at the Gateway Community Centre in Ravenscliffe, Bradford, are all too painfully aware of the horrific injuries a dog can inflict.

Last summer one of its volunteers was mauled by a pet dog at a friend’s house nearby and lost an arm.

Linda Woodhall, 61, who amazed friends’ with her fight back to health, has been fitted with a prosthetic arm and is back at the centre helping out at the Friday cafe. She also has a mechanical hook now which she can use to help her carry out daily chores and be an independent as possible.

The day it happened, she had called in at her friend’s house for a cup of tea when the American bulldog suddenly turned on her.

The dog, which was not a banned breed, was seized by police and later put down. No charges were ever brought against its owners.

Centre manager Gerry Andrews said: “Linda’s positive spirit has been an inspiration to all of us but she is a constant reminder of what horror a dog can inflict.

“Compulsory microchipping would be some help in tracing dogs’ owners but I think the real difference in reducing dog attacks would be by encouraging more responsible pet ownership and pet care. The majority of dogs we have running around this estate do belong to people. Problems happen when dogs become too much for their owners to handle. People have to be realistic about what they take on.”

To help that happen in Ravenscliffe, plans are being made at the community centre to highlight the need for responsible dog ownership with an action day this summer, a year after Miss Woodhall’s attack.

Talks have also been held with the Dog’s Trust to train two of the centre’s volunteers to microchip dogs and use a scanner to read the chips and trace any strays’ owners.

Only last week two stray dogs got into the centre’s grounds with one of them running up to nursery children and scaring them, said Mr Andrews.