A PENSIONER has described the moment he and his beloved dog were viciously attacked while on a morning walk in Chipping Sodbury.

Bob Beresford was out walking his 10-year-old pet Ozzy when the pair were set upon by two larger dogs.

Mr Beresford, 74, had to be treated for bites to both his arms whilst Ozzy, a Cairn terrier, is still receiving medical treatment for the injuries he sustained.

“We walk around Chipping Sodbury every morning although I take different routes,” said Mr Beresford, of Horse Street. “That morning I had picked up my paper and we were on our way home.

“I have walked that way before and never had any problems but this time a Staffordshire-type dog came up behind me and an Alsatian came over a nearby wall.”

He added: “I was on my knees with my arms around Ozzy trying to protect him. I suppose that is why my arms were bitten.

“There was blood everywhere and my coat and trousers were ripped to shreds. If it had been a school kid walking their dog they wouldn’t have stood a chance.

“Ozzy had two gaping wounds on each side where they tried to rip him apart.”

An off-duty fireman who lives opposite, a van driver and his passenger, a bus driver and a window cleaner working nearby rushed to the pair’s rescue and ensured the dogs retreated. Police were called to the scene and paramedics treated Mr Beresford at his home while Ozzy was taken to a vet.

“Ozzy was doing okay but then his wounds went septic,” said Mr Beresford, who has had the dog since it was born. “He had to be put to sleep for a while and now has tubes coming out of his sides to drain out the puss.

“There was a time when we didn’t think he would make it. Ozzy is such a friendly dog, it was totally unprovoked.”

An Avon and Somerset police spokeswoman said: “Police were called just after 9.30am on Monday, February 17 to a report of a man and his dog being attacked by two other dogs in Cotswold Road, Chipping Sodbury.

“Officers found a man in his 70s suffering from bruising, scratches and puncture wounds following the attack. His dog required veterinary treatment for his injuries.

“Witnesses said the dogs involved in the attack had escaped from a nearby garden.

“Two men have been reported for summons to court, each for having a dog dangerously out of control.”