Child loses eye after dog attack

19 July 2007

BRUSSELS – The 19-month-old boy from Wellen who suffered severe bite wounds to his face and neck when he was attacked by a dog on Tuesday has lost one of his eyes.

Further examination will is needed to ascertain whether his second eye is intact. The boy’s face is still completely swollen up.

Wellen mayor Johan Vanschoenwinkel (Open VLD) says the child is still in critical condition. He was transferred from the Virga Jesse hospital in Hasselt to the University hospital Gasthuisberg in Louvain on Wednesday.

The boy was attacked by the dog while at his grandparents’ house. The dog was a cross between a rottweiler and a mastiff.

“The child underwent a six-hour operation in the hospital in Hasselt to reattach his nose…Part of his face is mutilated. He is on a respirator.

He will be kept in an artificial coma at Louvain for at least a week…We will have to wait and see what happens,” mayor Vanschoenwinkel said.

Subject: Belgian news