Hero bulldog bites back to protect owner in Sunderland dog robbery attempt

Supermarket worker Denise Taylor was taking six-year-old British bulldog Lexi for her morning walk at Ryhope Beach when two men got out of a van, ran towards her and tried to grab the lead.

Denise, 59, had it wrapped around her hand, causing her to be pulled across the road and brought to her knees by one of the men.

Lexi dug her teeth into the attacker as she defended Denise, biting him once on his hand and then again on his arm, while her owner was struck a number of times as they fought.

The men retreated to their van, which was a small white vehicle with red seats, leaving Denise in the road in her bare feet, after she was pulled out of her flip flops and along the road, with dog and owner left shaken by their ordeal.

Police are now investigating the incident, which happened on the B1287, near to the steps leading to the Railway Inn in Robson Place and close to the lane heading down to the beach.

Today, Denise’s daughter Jill Marley has spoken of the shocking attack in the hope the men can be found and to warn others they could be at risk of having their dog stolen.

“Lexi is a hero, my Mam said when she went for him, it was very sharp and then she bit him hard on the arm,” said Jill, 33, who works as a horse groom.

“She said she didn’t really know what was going on at first but she said he started to scream and then the dog had hold of him.

“They started swearing and she couldn’t be sure of their accents.

“It all happened in such a short space of time.

“The dog was shaken up. She’s solid, all muscle, and my Mam got a couple of whacks, I think she’ll have some bruises around her arm and back.

“If they had got the dog, she would never have got over it.

“What if they had gone for somebody who wasn’t able to defend themselves?

“That’s a walk they take every day, and now she says she’ll not go out alone.

“When I went around to see my Mam, Lexi loves me and is all over me normally, but she wasn’t her usual self.

“Lots of other people walk their dogs down there and to the beach and I want them to be careful and know that this is happening.”

Northumbria Police said it had launched an inquiry into the attempted theft of a dog, which yesterday, Tuesday, May 19.

A spokesperson added: “It was reported that two men had got out a van and approached a woman as she was walking her dog at about 10am.

“One of the men was bitten by the dog before they both fled the area.

“Inquiries into the incidents are ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 quoting log 394 19/05/20.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you

How to subscribe to the print edition

It’s easy to subscribe to your local newspaper. We have arranged a special 20 per cent off subscription offer for people to take advantage of.

Visit www.localsubsplus.co.uk, choose the newspaper title, the type of subscription and enter your details.