Freedom for dog drunk on Stella Artois that mauled boy

A 10-year-old boy could be scarred for life after being bitten in the face by a dog that had been given strong lager by its owners. Joseph Pickering was attacked by the Staffordshire bull terrier just minutes after it had been fed a can of Stella Artois that had been poured down its throat "because it was thirsty". The boy, from Colne in Lancashire, was bitten in the face by the dog after leaning over his next door neighbour's fence to stroke it. He was rushed to hospital with facial wounds just above his eye and needed a skin graft to treat the injury. A hearing at Burnley magistrates' court heard that the dog, called Diesel, had been fed lager by its owner's uncle after complaints that the dog was thirsty and needed a drink.

It was said to be a "generally good-natured dog" before the incident, which took place on July 2. A civil action was brought under the Dangerous Dogs Act for failing to keep the animal under proper control. An application for the dog's destruction was also brought by police but was not granted. Joseph's mother, Carolann Dickson, said her son's injuries were "so deep you could almost see the skull". She added: "I think it's disgusting that the dog won't be put down after all the pain and everything we've been through. Joe's been having nightmares and he's very apprehensive. When he goes out he's worried about dogs coming up and down the street."



The dog's owner, James Holmes, admitted owning a dangerous dog, but the animal escaped a destruction order after a plea from a behavioural expert. The court heard that the dog was fed a can of lager after becoming thirsty when it was taken for a walk by Mr Holmes' uncle, Paul Ashworth, on a warm day. A friend who was sunbathing in the garden at the time said she had told Mr Ashworth to give the animal some water. "He was panting like mad and he was wandering around looking for shade," she told the court. "I said 'take Diesel for a drink.' Ash had a can of beer in his hand, lifted his head and poured it into his mouth. He said the beer wouldn't hurt the dog. The next thing was Joseph leaned over the gate from the outside and put both his hands on the dog and then I heard a snap and saw Joseph bleeding.

"The only explanation I can think of is that Joseph touched him where he had been bitten and that it was a roasting hot day and he'd been fed beer." Mr Holmes said he had hired an animal psychologist, David Gilman, to assess Diesel and to work with them on a training programme to improve the dog's behaviour. Speaking after the hearing, Mr Gilman said: "If a dog has carried out an unprovoked attack on a child I would say it should be destroyed, but the circumstances here were absolutely bizarre. I can't underestimate what the effects of giving beer to a dog on a hot day would be but we all know the consequences that it led to. Just like humans, drinking outside in the sun would have had effects on the dog's brain which I believe would lead to this behaviour."