AN ELDERLY woman was pinned to the ground and viciously attacked by a dog just yards from her home.

The 75-year-old has been left in hospital requiring surgery after she was bitten several times in Springfield Road, Kearsley.

Shocking pictures show the injuries the woman suffered - some of which The Bolton News has decided are too graphic to publish.

The woman's family have spoken of her traumatic ordeal and thanked members of the public who rushed to her aid.

She was out walking her toy Cockapoo on Tuesday at around 4pm and had only gone around 50 yards from her house when the attack took place.

The woman was near the junction with Holcombe Crescent when a man came around the corner with a Presa Carnario, also known as a Canary Mastiff, dog on a lead.

The woman's daughter said the other dog 'lurched' towards the Cockapoo and her mother then pulled her dog behind her to get it out of the way.

The Mastiff is described as 'going for' the elderly woman's leg before pinning her on the ground.

Her daughter said: "She is five foot tall and maybe nine stone. It was not letting her go. It was shaking its head while she was on the floor. It has clamped its teeth down."

The man who was walking the dog tried to pull it clear and hit it on the head with the lead.

A man in a van saw what was happening and pulled over to try to help.

Eventually, the man managed to get the dog off the elderly woman and the man who had been driving the van put the woman's dog into his vehicle.

The police and ambulance service were called.

People in nearby houses heard the commotion and started to come out with blankets for the woman while they waited for emergency services to arrive.

The man with the Mastiff waited at the scene and said it was not his dog but he was walking it for a friend.

The woman was taken to hospital for treatment and was found to have suffered a broken ankle as well as various bite injuries.

Her daughter said: "She's got bite marks, like puncture wounds on her leg. The bone was sticking out. She was traumatised.

"I can't imagine the fear that she experienced or the agony. I got a phone call from my mum's neighbour saying 'don't panic but your mum has gone to hospital, she has been bitten by a dog'.

"I just thought that a dog had bit her on the arm and I would get there as soon as I could. I got to the hospital and she was just covered in blood.

"I can't stop thinking about it. I'm just devastated."

The woman was due to have surgery yesterday and will require skin grafts.

The family wish to thank the man in the van and residents who came out to assist.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesman confirmed officers were called to a report of a dog attack shortly before 4pm on Tuesday.

The dog was seized and no arrests have been made.

Anyone with information should call 101 and quote reference 1188 of December 19.