‘The dog tore the face off him’ – father speaks of horror at attack on son (8) in Limerick park

Joe Flynn, (58), said his son Jackson, (8), is “lucky” to be alive, after his head was grabbed by a dog and locked in the animal’s jaws on Wednesday last week.

Mr Flynn said the death of 23 year-old Nicole Morey, who was mauled to death by her dogs last Tuesday night, prompted him to go public about the dog attack on his son, and to warn the public to be vigilant of any type of dog.

Mr Flynn said the dog that attacked his son was not a large dog, nor one that appeared to be on any restrictive breed lists.

However, he said the terrier-type dog caused serous damage to his son’s face. The attack has “traumatised” his son and also his six-year-old daughter, who witnessed the incident in the People’s Park in Limerick city, he said.

“We love going to the People’s Park, it’s great, the staff there and the park rangers are brilliant, and my young lad loved dogs and he always asked to pet a dog in the park, and he would give them a fast rub and let the dog lick his face,” Mr Flynn explained.

However, a walk in the park turned into a nightmare when a dog latched onto the boy’s face when he tried to pet the animal.

“There was a black terrier-type of dog, some mad mixed breed, and my son went over and put his hand down to rub the dog. The dog was sitting down without a leash, with his tongue hanging out, and he [my son] went to rub the dog and the dog just locked onto his face.”

“The dog tore the face off him. I’m not a religious person but I’m still thankful because if the dog got him in the neck and hit a vital vein, he might have bled out.”

Jackson underwent reconstructive facial surgery at University Hospital Limerick after the attack.

“When I had him cuddled into my hip and had his bite covered with a jumper, the dog started going for other people, and screaming at other dogs,” Mr Flynn said.

“The dog was going for everybody, barking and screaming. The dog bit him, and locked onto him, and then the dog let go and ran off.

“We got an awful fright, it was so traumatic, my daughter was screaming, my kids don’t ever want to look at a dog again.

“The dog was not on a leash at all. The [park] staff were saying there is an awful problem with dogs in there, with people leaving their dogs off a leash.

“The amount of dogs in the park is unnatural, there is a lot of people that, fair enough just walk around with their dog on a leash and collect their dog’s poo in plastic bags, but there are other [owners] that are not abiding b y the rules at all.

“How lucky were we? God forbid the next family isn’t as lucky, because it is going to happen again.

“The People’s Park is not a dog park, there are dog parks in other areas where owners can release the dogs in a safe environment where there are barriers made of diamond wire.”

Mr Flynn praised staff at University Hospital Limerick for their “brilliant” response and treatment of his son.

“I want to highlight the help we got at the hospital, I know it has [overcrowding] problems, but they treated my child very quickly and very well.

“When they saw the injuries on his face they knew he wouldn’t have been able to take the stitches so they said they would have to perform surgery.

“They cleaned [the wounds] up and I couldn’t say anything good enough about the place, they were brilliant out there.

“He got 30 stitches, he’s still, obviously sore. He always wanted a dog but he doesn’t want anything to do with a dog now.”

Mr Flynn warned parents: “Don’t let your child go near a dog because you don’t know about the dog. Think twice.”

Asked if he would be in favour of banning certain dogs from Ireland, he said it would be better if owners were more educated about managing their dogs.

He suggested owners of dogs should have to complete a course in managing a dog before they are allowed own a dog.

Mr Flynn was speaking out following this week’s fatal dog attack on Nicole Morey (23).

Gardaí at Roxboro Road, Limerick (061-214340) have appealed for information.

When gardaí arrived at Ms Morey’s house in Fedamore late on Tuesday night, they encountered four aggressive dogs. A member of the armed garda Emergency Response Unit (ERU) shot one of the dogs, and three others had to be restrained.

It is understood Ms Morey was killed by her pet XL bully dog.

Ms Morey’s family are due to hold a vigil in her memory, and release balloons into the sky later this evening.