Dog escapes, attacks Holiday 6-year-old

HOLIDAY (FOX 13) - A little boy was left bloodied and bruised after a dog viciously attacked him in front of his Pasco County home on Sunday.

His family is concerned because the dog is still living in its home across the street after the attack.

According to his parents, 6-year-old Christopher Ohrmund was riding his scooter on the street in front of their home on Oakfield Avenue in Holiday, when a neighbor's dog broke free from its gated backyard.

The 70-pound dog came charging at the boy, according to witnesses.

"I looked back and the dog was right there, standing right next to me," said Christopher.

The dog latched onto his left leg. As Christopher fell to the ground and screamed for help, his father's friends came pulling up to the home.

"One of them was beating on the door and was hysterical. He had blood all over him, so I ran outside," said William Ohrmund, Christopher's father.

Together with his friends and Anthony Mougros, who ran out of his cousins home after hearing the screams, the men were able to fight off the dog. They locked Christopher in a nearby car to keep the dog from attacking him again.

"I hit the dog a couple of times, and then the [dog] reversed and finally let go," said Mougros, who grabbed a nearby broomstick to fight off the animal.

Christopher was rushed to a hospital in Trinity. He was later transported to St Joseph's Hospital in Tampa for surgery to treat the 40 lacerations on his left leg and thigh, according to his father.

He must now rely on a walker to get around as his leg heals.

The family was shocked to learn on Wednesday, when they returned home from the hospital, that the dog was never removed from their neighbor's home.

According to Pasco County Animal Services, in some cases, when a dog is a first-time offender, it is placed on a 10-day in-home quarantine. The dog must be monitored for rabies, and the animal is not allowed outside unless it is on a leash.

The Florida Dangerous Dog Law, in some cases, also gives pet owners the opportunity to keep their dog after it is deemed dangerous if the owner agrees to follow strict regulations and pays a $500 annual fee.

Animal Service officials said they tried reaching out to the Ohrmund family to learn more about the incident but have not yet been able to get in touch with anyone. At this time, it's undecided what will happen to the dog after the 10-day quarantine.

The dog's owner, who was out of town during the attack, was cited for failure to obtain a dog license. His grandmother, who was watching the dog, was cited by the Pasco County Sheriff's Office for the improper confinement of a vicious dog.

"It's scary because we walk to his bus stop. His bus stop is right on the corner, so we have to leave the house. I'm scared," said Christopher's mother, Kendra Ohrmund.

A family member of the dog's owner told Fox 13 that she believes the child opened the gate to let the dog out.