Dog Bites Girl in Face As She Waits for School Bus

A 10-year-old girl was bitten in the face by a dog Wednesday while she waited for a school bus with her mother in Desert Hot Springs, according to the Riverside County Department of Animal Services.

The girl was bitten at least once, maybe twice, by a 2-year-old husky mix named Ollie around 8 a.m. at the corner of Seventh Street and West Drive, said Animal Services spokesman John Welsh. The mother immediately took her daughter to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, and an animal services officer located the dog in a nearby yard, he said.

The canine will be impounded and quarantined at the Coachella Valley Animal Campus in Thousand Palms, according to Animal Services.

The girl, who lives in the area and may have been familiar with the dog, was petting the animal at the bus stop when "the dog turned and bit her for some unknown reason," Welsh said.

The Animal Services officer who picked up the dog said a couple had abandoned it at a home on Seventh Street, and a neighbor had started taking care of it.

"Even if this little girl was familiar with the dog, pet owners must realize that they should not allow their dog to roam freely," said Animal Services Director Robert Miller. "If this dog is within its own yard, this little girl doesn't get bit at the bus stop. Period."

Authorities "feel horrible that an innocent child gets bit while waiting for her school bus. And this attack was totally preventable," he said.

Actions by the Animal Services department in the case are pending, according to Welsh.

– City News Service.