The owner of a dog that bit a 3-year-old boy in the face at a Walmart allegedly fled with his dog before police arrived.
The Vancouver Police Department said the incident occurred on Dec. 18 in the evening at the store on Mill Plain Boulevard in Vancouver, Washington.
‘If they’re capable of attacking or biting, then they should not be allowed.’
The boy had to get stitches on his lip from the dog bite, according to police.
The video news report from KPTV-TV showed images of the boy’s stitches as well as an image of the suspected owner and his dog at the Walmart.
The boy’s father, Andrew Wegener, told KGW-TV that the child was traumatized by the attack.
“Who knows if Walmart’s policy was even enforced with the person with the dog in the store in the first place,” Wegener said. “A 3-year-old doesn’t go into the store looking to get bit by a dog, and I don’t think it’s fair that just any dog is allowed to walk freely in a store with somebody and nobody knows what kind of dog this is.”
The man said police told him the dog was a brown pit bull mix.
Shoppers at the store told KPTV they were alarmed by the incident.
“As a parent myself, with young ones, I shouldn’t have to worry about something like that happening going grocery shopping,” said Steve Burns.
“We know our pets,” said Jenny Miller. “If they’re capable of attacking or biting, then they should not be allowed.”
Burns said he owns a restaurant and has to deal with people trying to bend the rules about service animals.
“We kind of just have to grin and bear it and pray that the dog behaves itself and the owner is going to take care of the situation,” he explained.
The store said they allowed service animals inside but not pets. The Clark County Animal Control department said it was actively investigating the incident.
Dog trainer Shannon Walker warned the public not to pet unfamiliar dogs.
“It is absolutely unsafe to approach dogs that you are not familiar with,” she told KPTV.
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