Pitbull gnaws off baby's toes

[KenP]

http://www.news24.com/News24/World/N...043610,00.html

Puppy gnaws off baby's toes
12/12/2006 08:01 - (SA)


Bossier City, Louisiana - A puppy chewed off four of a baby girl's toes next to her sleeping parents, who were then booked on charges of child desertion and criminal negligence, police said.

Mary Shannon Hansche, 22, and Christopher Wayne Hansche, 26, told police they woke to the baby's cries, found her mangled foot and took her to hospital early on Sunday.

Police said on Monday that they had been sleeping on a mattress and that the month-old girl was in an infant seat beside them when the 6-week-old pitbull began chewing on her toes.

"They did not see the dog injuring the child," police spokesman Mark Natale said.

The puppy might have been trying to nurse on the toes of the baby, a veterinarian speculated.

"I know that sounds a little far-fetched, but that's the first thing that comes to my mind," Michael Dale said.