HYANNIS, MASS. (WHDH) - Authorities say a PetSmart worker on Cape Cod suffered a slew of injuries on Wednesday when a dog that was being groomed attacked her without warning.
Police responded around 11:15 a.m. to the store in Hyannis for a report of a dog bite and found a trail of blood leading from the grooming area, through the customer aisle and training area, around the corner and into the employee lounge.
Officers found a 22-year-old employee being treated by co-workers for multiple bite wounds, according to police.
The victim told police that the owner of the dog, a pit bull mix, brought the animal in wearing a muzzle and asking that it be groomed. The victim claimed the dog’s owner told her that it was “sweet as can be” when she asked him about the muzzle. The owner failed to disclose that it had attacked a person before, according to police.
The muzzle was removed during the grooming process, per store policy. The dog then attacked the victim for “no apparent reason without warning,” according to police.
The victim suffered bite wounds to her upper torso, wrist and hand, as well as extensive tearing of the flesh, possible broken bones and a suspected dislocated shoulder.
Police say the victim was taken to Cape Cod Hospital and then flown to Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston for treatment. Her condition is not known at this time.
Police are investigating the attack.
PetSmart issued the following statement on the situation:
“This is an upsetting, unfortunate occurrence, and our thoughts are first and foremost with our associate who was injured. We will continue to support her and wish her a full and speedy recovery. We are actively investigating the incident to determine how it occurred, and if there is anything we can do to help prevent this from happening again in the future.”
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