Family dog bites 1-year-old in the face and eye during attack, Florida police say

A 1-year-old was bitten in the face by a family dog, and his mother has been charged with child neglect, according to Florida police.

The child’s mother left her son in his playpen in the care of a friend while she went to buy “narcotics and alcohol” on April 24, according to a news release from the New Port Richey Police Department.

The friend was not in the same room as the child, and two dogs were “roaming freely” around the house, the release says. One of the dogs “attacked” the child and bit him in the face, leaving “deep puncture wounds and lacerations” on his face and left eye, police said.

The child was flown to a children’s hospital. Officers responded to the hospital just after 11:15 a.m.

The friend initially told detectives that the child had been attacked by a stray dog outside but later admitted that the attack occurred inside the house, police said.

Police did not say what happened to the dogs.

The child’s mother was arrested and charged with child neglect, according to Pasco County court records. The mother’s friend was charged with child neglect and making a false report to law enforcement, according to court records.

New Port Richey is about 35 miles northwest of Tampa.

This story was originally published April 25, 2023 at 7:02 PM with the headline "Family dog bites 1-year-old in the face and eye during attack, Florida police say."