Boy, 6, stable after dog attack

A 6-year-old boy is in stable condition after being attacked by at least eight stray dogs, the General Hospital of Armed Police Force confirmed Wednesday.

The boy, surnamed Hu, was bitten by the dogs in his backyard in Tian village, Haidian district, around 10 am Sunday, resulting in severe injuries to his head and limbs.

"He had nearly 50 wounds on his body. The boy must have another surgery to his leg soon, but the injury may affect his movements in the future," said Meng Xiangxi, the doctor in charge of the boy's case.

Doctors are most worried about whether he was infected with the rabies virus, which can incubate for a long time in the human body, said Meng.　

"Although the boy was vaccinated in hospital, it's hard to keep him safe from rabies, since the wounds were not cleaned immediately after the accident, until they came to the hospital," He said.

The boy was in shock when he arrived, said Meng.　

The boy's father, a porter from Henan Province working at an electronics supplier in Tongzhou district, said that at least eight dogs jumped on his son, pushed him to the ground, and started biting him. When the boy's grandmother rushed out to rescue him, he had lost consciousness and was covered in blood.

"He has nearly 150 stitches and had surgery. Although my boy is out of danger, he always wakes suddenly at night, saying 'dad, help me drive the dogs away,'" his father said.

After the accident, villagers started to catch the stray dogs.

A police officer from Tian village police station confirmed Wednesday that due to the recent demolition there, many people moved out of the village abandoning the dogs they once raised.

"Three dogs were shot to death and we have sent the others to a refuge for stray dogs. We will stop the stray dogs hurting people again," he said.

According to statistics from Beijing Municipal Bureau of Agriculture last September, only 950,000 dogs are registered in Beijing, but it is estimated there are at least 1 million unregistered dogs.　

"The government should be responsible for this case, since their ignorance in how to deal with the stray dogs resulted in the incident," said Chang Jiwen, a professor with the Social Law Research Department at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"Moreover, legislation on the management of stray dogs is urgently needed," he noted.

Li Hao and Zhang Wei contributed to this story