A WOMAN who was physically and emotionally scarred by a dog attack is appealing to have signs put up and action taken to make dog owners aware of their responsibility.

The Bradford woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, was walking her child to school through Lister Park when she and her young boy were bitten by a dog that wasn’t on a leash.

The dog, described as a German Shepard ran up to the mother and son and began circling them before biting her son.

Seeing her son in distress, she came forward to hopefully distract the dog, and get the owner to step in.

She said: “I could see the owner, he just stood there watching, not interfering or trying to get the dog to leave us alone.

“At first, he was saying that the dog is only playing, but the way it was circling us, I could tell it wasn’t just playing.

“You know when people say, it’s not going to bite, how can they be so sure.

“Animals are unpredictable, and, in this case, it did bite us and there’s a bigger message here.

“I know people are scared of dogs and they try to get past it but dogs should be on leashes and this should be enforced to protect people.

“This isn’t the first time it’s happened, but people don’t report it. It’s not safe for my children.”

The incident took place on June 10 and was reported to West Yorkshire Police, who are currently investigating the incident.

No one has been formally charged or arrested in this case as of yet.

A Bradford Council spokesperson, said: “It’s against the law for owners to allow dogs to be dangerously out of control so it is important people maintain control of their animals at all times.

“Additionally, the Council has a Dog Control PSPO which requires dogs to be kept on leads around all sports grounds, fields, parks, and pitches during organised events and on footpaths around lakes and ponds.

"It also requires people to remove dog mess. Failure to comply can result in a fixed penalty fine of £100 or a maximum penalty of £1000 post-conviction.

The woman, added: “We can’t keep living in fear of whether a dog is going to attack us or not, they need to be on leashes.”

“I don’t know how we’re going to build up the courage and go again.”

“We will review our park signage and take appropriate action.”