‘Horrific’ dog attack leaves woman, 85, bruised and traumatised

Khalikha Hussain, 85, and her daughter-in-law were walking up the gated pathway to her house on the Kent Street estate in Burnley when she was suddenly attacked by a dog which was not on a lead.

The dog ran towards Khalika, circling her before biting the top of her left hand, and knocking her to the floor.

Khalikha used her walking stick to fend off the dog, which then went for her daughter-in-law (who has asked to not to be named).

The attack, which happened at around 5pm on Friday (January 20), left the 85-year-old suffering nasty bruising and she was taken to hospital for treatment.

Dog bite marks in the circled area (Image: Muhammad Hussain)

Speaking on the distress the attack has caused on the family, Khalikha’s son, Muhammad Hussain, said: “To see how my mum and sister-in-law were after the attack was difficult.

"She’s an 85-year-old lady so to be attacked by a dog is appalling.

“She got bad bruising on her hand and grazed her knee from the fall but thankfully didn’t break any bones. She’s been given strong antibiotics.

“It happened last week but she is still in a state of shock. It’s been really traumatic for them and the family.”

Accent Housing Association manages the property on the estate, and before the incident residents have raised complaints about issues that have been ongoing since October last year.

Muhammad said: “My mum has been here for the last 10 years and there’s been no bother.

"They have a fantastic relationship with the rest of the community and tenants but there’s been some issues recently.

“The neighbour owns two dogs and lets them roam around without leads, and leaves huge piles of dog foul in front of the house and rubbish besides the flat, so rats are always there now.

 “It’s a health and safety hazard and, especially after the dog attack, is a danger to the community.

"Children can’t play out because of the dogs roaming round without leads. We don’t want to live in a community that isn’t safe.

"The housing association has shown no care to get this resolved and we reported it to the police but I can’t understand why no action has been taken yet.”

A spokesperson for Accent Housing said: "We were very sorry to hear that Ms Hussain sustained an injury from a dog near her home. Accent has a stringent policy on pet ownership to ensure that any pets are kept safely and responsibly. 

"Following the report of this incident, Accent found that a dog was being looked after by a customer in their home without Accent’s permission or knowledge, and as such the customer has been asked to responsibly remove the dog from the property within 24 hours.

"Our customer team remains in contact with Ms Hussain to support her where possible, and a maintenance team has visited the road to ensure it is clean and safe for customers."

You can get an unlimited fine or be sent to prison for up to six months (or both) if your dog is dangerously out of control. You may not be allowed to own a dog in the future and your dog may be destroyed.

Khalikha and her daughter-in-law have reported the attack to the police and an investigation has been launched.

A spokesperson for the police said: “An allegation of assault has been made and we are investigating.”