Neighbors risked their own lives and jumped in to help an 8-year-old boy who was being attacked by a dog in Manchester, New Hampshire, Wednesday.
Witnesses say the boy lost his ball around 12:15 p.m. in the backyard of a Lake Avenue home that abuts a playground, so he used a pool ladder to climb over the fence to try to retrieve the ball -- that’s when a Rottweiler in the yard started to attack him.
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WATCH HERENeighbors say they heard the commotion and ran out to help.
When neighbor Matt Buchan tried to get the boy away from the Rottweiler, a second dog, believed to be a mixed breed pit bull, started to attack him.
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SIGN UP Matt Buchan's mother, Cathy Buchan, called 911, and his stepfather, Eric Harnum, jumped in to try to save both of them, hitting the dogs with a shovel.
“I’m on the phone with 911, they made me stay on the phone," Cathy Buchan said. "I just kept telling them, 'the boy’s going to die, that boy’s getting eaten.'”
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Matt Buchan, who was treated and released from the hospital for several bite marks, says he doesn't feel brave but he's confident he did the right thing.
“Physically I’m alright, emotionally, I’m a mess," Matt Buchan told NBC10 Boston. "It’s a kid, don’t matter if he was wrong or right, it was a kid in trouble….I know I did the right thing, I don’t feel brave, no. I know I did the right thing, I know I did.”
The 8-year-old boy was rushed to Elliott Hospital with serious injuries, according to the Manchester Fire Department. He has not been identified.
Two dogs were taken into custody by animal control after the attack, but it's unclear what, if anything, will happen to them or their owners, since they were on their own fenced-in property with "Beware of Dog" signs clearly posted.
