Man rushed to hospital with serious injuries after being attacked by dog while out running

The dog, understood to be a Rottweiler, was being walked on a lead by its female owner at the time.

The animal was not muzzled at the time of the attack.

It managed to break free from its owner and chased the man before biting him a number of times on the leg.

The victim, who is in his 20s, was rushed to Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry where he underwent emergency treatment.

It is understood gardaí had, by Monday morning, identified the dog at the centre of the incident.

Officers have now launched an investigation into the incident.

Local county councillor Terry Crossan said he was horrified by the attack.

He said people needed to take full responsibility for their dogs.

“I want to pay particular praise to the gardaí in dealing with this situation and taking control of it once they realised the seriousness of this incident.

“This man was lucky to escape even though his injuries are very serious.

“If this was a child, the consequences could have been much worse and it’s not even worth considering that,” he said.

The attack comes less than two weeks after a 23-year-old woman died in a dog attack in Co Limerick.

Nicole Morey died after being mauled to death by her own XL bully dog when she entered her home after being out celebrating her birthday.

The tragedy has once again opened up the debate on dangerous dog breeds and the possibility of certain breeds being banned in Ireland.

Last week, Taoiseach Simon Harris promised to move to ban XL bully dogs and other dangerous breeds in the wake of Ms Morey’s death.

The Government is now consulting with the Attorney General on outlawing the breed.

Earlier this month, a pitbull terrier which had attacked two people at a house in a Cork City suburb had to be shot dead by armed gardaí.