A MOTHER had her cheek bitten off trying to defend her baby from a bull terrier.

The woman, named locally as Waheed Akhtar, was rushed to Bradford Royal Infirmary, which specialises in plastic surgery, after the attack at Upper Mount Street, Thornton Lodge, at around 1.40pm yesterday.

She was said by police to be in a “stable” condition last night.

West Yorkshire Police and the force helicopter were involved in searching for the dog and its owner.

Last night police said two men from the Lockwood area had been arrested in relation to offences under the Dangerous Dogs Act and were being questioned.

The mum-of-two, 26, from Upper Mount Street, was in the street holding a pram containing her baby while chatting with neighbours, say residents.

As she was talking, the dog, described as an American bull terrier, leapt up at her pram. The woman turned round to defend her baby and was grabbed by the dog, say neighbours.

The dog bit her leg and dragged her to the ground before biting her cheek off, they said. Builders and neighbours armed with shovels and heavy objects beat the dog until it began to loose consciousness and let go.

A builder meanwhile treated the woman with bandages while an ambulance arrived.

One neighbour said: “It was horrendous. The dog grabbed her head and basically dragged her one metre into the road.

“I came out, grabbed a stone and hit the dog. At that point I knew it wouldn’t do the trick so I got a thick piece of timber and whacked it on the head.

“After a few whacks in the head the dog got dazed and let go.

“I tried to keep her conscious. It looked like she was going to pass out.

“I don’t know how many times I bashed it. If it had grabbed a little child it would have died.

“This is a main road for children going to the school (Mount Pleasant JIN School).

“The dog lives across the road from the school so basically it could attack any child at any time.”

The woman’s cousin, Jabran Shahid, 25, said: “I’m very upset and very angry that this should happen. It could have been anyone’s child and it’s unthinkable.”

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said: “We received a call at about 1.41pm to a report of a woman that had been bitten by a dog in Upper Mount Street, Huddersfield.

“Police officers and the police helicopter were deployed to the area to attend to the woman and search for the dog and a man who was believed to be with the dog.

“The woman has been taken to Bradford Royal Infirmary with facial and leg injuries.”