'He mauled my son's face': Boy, 6, injured in dog attack

“I turned around and it bit me when I was playing. Daddy had to pull the dog off me.”

A six-year-old boy has been left with horrific facial injuries after he was mauled by a pit bull.

Little Dante Skordas required 30 stitches, and has been left “mentally scarred” after the attack.

Dante’s dad Andrew told 7News said the attack was quite sudden, and his two-year-old sister was also playing nearby.

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“It was very traumatic, especially for him,” he said.

“They were just playing, and he’s jumped up and snapped, mauled my son’s face.

“We say he’s taken the bite for his sister.”

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Dante needed 30 stitches after three hours of surgery. Picture: 7News

"I turned around and it bit me"

Dante and his sister were playing in a neighbour’s backyard in Rockhampton last week, with Andrew also present, when the attack happened.

“I turned around and it bit me when I was playing,” Dante told 7News. “Daddy had to pull the dog off me.”

Graphic photos taken by Dante’s parents show a large, open wound on his left cheek, and another from his right cheek to his chin.

He also suffered damage to his cheek.

7News reports Dante required a three-hour surgery in Rockhampton Hospital after the attack.

A GoFundMe created for the family claims Dante “almost died” from blood loss when “his whole face was ripped apart and chewed off”.

RELATED: Young boy rushed to hospital after horrific dog attack

Dante had a large piece of flesh ripped from just below his ear. Picture: 7News

He also suffered another wound that ran from his mouth to his chin. Picture: 7News

Council seizes dog after attack

7News reports the neighbours did not own the dog, but were rather looking after it for another person.

The dog has since been seized by Rockhampton Regional Council.

“Council’s thoughts go out to those who have been impacted by a dog attack on Friday,” Councillor Grant Mathers, head of the council’s planning and regulation committee, said in a statement.

“Council has seized the dog and begun investigations into the circumstances of the attack.”

Originally published as 'He mauled my son's face': Boy, 6, injured in dog attack