A horrified mom had to beat away a dog after it bit her 19-month-old daughter in the face in an Abbotsford park Friday afternoon.
Instead of staying to help the injured toddler, who was bleeding from puncture wounds in her nose, the dog's owner allegedly fled from the park – which doesn't allow dogs in the first place.
Now, police are looking for the owner so they can find out if this is a dangerous animal – or just a bad situation.
Ashley Patrignani says her daughter Miah was playing with the dog near the playground at Jackson Park Elementary when the animal suddenly changed.
"The dog stared at her blankly and turned on her and snapped at her face. And then she went flying back and it went for her leg," Patrignani told CTV News.
The dog scratched Miah's face and punctured the inside of her nose. Patrignani fought back.
"I punched it in the face to get it off her," she said.
The owner apologized, but then left. Patrignani's boyfriend was out of reach and she couldn't get to her car, so she walked her bleeding daughter to the hospital, about three kilometres away.
"He said, ‘I hope she's okay,' and took off," Patrignani said. "What kind of person can do that? She's not even two!"
Abbotsford Police Const. Ian MacDonald says his officers visited the toddler in hospital, and then canvassed the neighbourhood for witnesses.
"A person who should have stepped up and taken responsibility clearly didn't do that," MacDonald said.
Police have been in touch with animal control to see if the dog or the owner has any history with authorities, but haven't found answers yet.
The punishment for the dog and its owner could range from a simple apology to putting the dog down, depending on the seriousness of other incidents the dog may have been involved in, he said.
"If this is a one-off maybe things can be made right with this family," MacDonald said. "But hiding and laying low is the wrong thing to do."
Officers say they're looking for a dog resembling a pit bull who answers to the name "Kira." The owner is a man about six feet tall with a medium build and short brown hair.
MacDonald says parents should also be wary of the risks of a strange dog.
Patrignani said Miah is still having trouble sleeping, but her face is healing. She says she doesn't want the dog to get put down, just for the owner to own up.