A five-year-old and a 13-year-old were attacked by a dog that was loose in Saskatoon Wednesday afternoon.
Saskatoon Police Service and animal control officers received several calls about a dog loose in the 2700 block of 33rd Street West.
The two kids were bitten, as were two adults who were trying to help the kids during the attack and the owner of the dog.
Animal control took the dog while the kids were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Sheila Gibbons with the Saskatoon SPCA said there are a number of reasons dogs might bite, noting they could be nervous, anxious, hurt or sick.
“Any dog can bite, so you always want to be cautious around dogs you don’t know,” Gibbons said.
In situations where a strange dog might approach people, Gibbons said you should try to stay calm, adding dogs can feed off your energy.
“You want to try and stay still. We try to tell people, and especially children, you want to be ‘a tree’, so tuck your arms in and look down, don’t make eye contact and try to keep calm.”
Gibbons said even in cases where a dog is with an owner, people should always ask permission before approaching a dog.