Police at the scene in Kirkby (Image: Liverpool Echo )

       Residents are demanding major changes after a three-year-old girl was bitten on the face in a vicious dog attack outside a pub.

       Police were called to the Market Tavern, in Kirkby, Merseyside, shortly after 3pm on Saturday afternoon.

       The child was rushed to hospital following the incident, with police describing her injuries as “serious, but not life-threatening”.

       Merseyside Police seized a dog at the scene and will determine its breed before it is “humanely destroyed”.

       The Liverpool Echo reports its readers had praised the little girl and demanded action following the incident.

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       Police were called on Saturday afternoon (Image: Liverpool Echo )

       Anne ？？ Darbyshire wrote: “That poor little girl will be scarred for life, if not physically, definitely mentally. By law, you are supposed to have full control of your dog.

       “I would go further and say that all dogs when out in public anywhere should be leashed and muzzled and they should bring back dog licences.

       “There should be designated enclosures where they can be run off the lead and other people who wish to stay away from them can. There are too many cases like this happening these days.”

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       A child's hula hoop inside the police cordon (Image: Liverpool Echo )

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       Yvonne Holmes said: “As a dog owner all dogs should be on a lead. I have had a Rottweiler and would not dream of letting them roam on their own and not on a hot day early morning and late evening.

       “You take them out and definitely not where there are a lot of people about. When will people learn that any dog can turn, and I mean any dog from small to big. Hope the child is ok.”

       A 31-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of affray and having a dog dangerously out of control in a public place.

       The man, from Ormskirk in Lancashire, has been taken into custody to be questioned.

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       A man has been arrested following the incident (Image: Liverpool Echo )

       Chief Inspector Jim Wilde, of Merseyside Police, said: "This was a horrific attack which has left a young girl receiving hospital treatment for significant injuries to her face.

       “I want to reassure people that she is currently receiving the best possible care and treatment for her injuries at Alder Hey, and we hope she makes a speedy recovery.

       "We seized the dog at the scene, which will now be humanely destroyed, and extensive efforts are now underway to establish exactly what happened.

       “I want to appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time of the incident, who may have information which could help us with our investigation to come forward as soon as possible. You may even live locally and have CCTV, or have been passing in a vehicle and captured dashcam footage – if so, we want to hear from you.

       "This case highlights in the starkest terms the potential dangers of dogs, and I would appeal to anyone with information about dangerous dogs in their area to contact us so that we can take pro-active action."

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