Drumchapel pensioner hospitalised and man charged after 'dog attack'

Anne McKellar, 71, told the Post she was walking to the bus stop on Drumry Road to go for her weekly shopping when the animal jumped on her.

The Drumchapel resident said that she takes a shortcut through the communal back garden area of her property on Heathcot Avenue as she uses a walking frame and there are no stairs on that route, making life easier for her.

She said: “I was walking through to get the bus to go get my shopping and then as I passed the bin area they [the dog and its owner] were down the back of it, it’s a communal area.

“The man was picking stuff up. He was kneeling down, and the dog just turned its head and looked at me but I carried on walking slowly because I’m disabled - I’ve had a stroke, and I was using my walking frame.

“Next thing I knew the dog flew over the fence and started nipping at my legs, and then it was up behind me, pushing at the back of me with its paws.

"It was quite a big dog.

“At first I thought it was playing with me but then I realised the blood was dripping on my clothes and I realised it was biting me.”

Anne shows off her wounds after she was bitten by a dog. The Post has blurred the image due to its graphic nature.

Anne said she began shouting for help, asking the man to come and get his dog - but she claims he told her she would be all right and that he then ignored her.

Anne explained that by this point neighbours had begun coming out on their verandahs to see what was going on.

She added: “Some of them were just too frightened to intervene. They said they were scared in case it went for them. It was terrifying.

“I’ve just never experienced anything that like before. My mind wasn’t even focused, I wasn’t concentrating, it really took me by surprise.

“Because of my memory, I have to go through what I’ve got to do, ‘I’ve got to go to the bank, I’ve got to get this and go there’ - and the next thing I know there’s a dog flying at me.

“I’m in a bit of shock with it all. I’m trying to shove it out of my mind and forget about it, but I can’t.

"I’ve never experienced anything like that before. It was totally unprovoked.”

A neighbour took Anne in after the alleged incident and contacted her daughter Gail, who was at work at the time.

The 71-year-old has been recovering with support from family after the terrifying incident

Gail said that she asked for a photograph of her mum’s arm to see how bad the damage was - and after seeing the image headed straight from her work to be with her mum.

Gail told the Post: “I asked them how bad it was and if they could take a picture because they said she’s in their house and they were helping to clean it up because there was blood and stuff.

“When I saw the picture I left my work, it was so bad. My mum luckily hadn’t seen it and at that point she said she didn’t think that it had broken the skin.

"But I ended up taking her to the hospital, and it wasn’t until she was sitting with her arm up on the window of the car that she looked in the side mirror and burst into tears,

"I think she was just in shock.

“My mum said she was holding on to her walking frame because if she lost her balance and feel it would just attack her face so she was just gripping on.”

Anne has gone to stay with her daughter for a few days to get some rest and to allow her arm to begin healing.

Gail said that she is now concerned that her mum may experience lasting consequences beyond her physical injuries as a result of the alleged incident.

She added: “It just makes you think 'is she going to feel comfortable in her own house now?'

"She does sit in the garden when it’s nice, and she will take that short cut if she’s going to the shops because it makes life easier.

“The garden is kind of enclosed - there are three- to four-foot metal fences separating them, but the dog was able to jump it.

“My mum’s not scared of dogs or anything like that. We were in total shock.

"I wonder how it will affect her in the long run. Is she going to be scared of dogs when she sees them in the street? You just don’t know how it affects you.

“You just don’t think it will ever happen to you or someone you know.”

Officers confirmed a 50-year-old man has since been charged in connection with the incident.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Officers received a report of a woman having been bitten by a dog on Drumry Road East in Drumchapel around 1.30pm on Friday, September 2, 2022.

“The 70-year-old woman was taken to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital for treatment.

“A 50-year-old man has been charged in connection with the incident, and a report of the circumstances will be submitted to the procurator fiscal.”