DeKalb Girl Recovering After Dog Attack

LITHONIA, Ga. - The 8-year-old Lithonia girl mauled by two dogs near her home remains in critical condition Wednesday.

DeKalb police said they had to pry the dogs off of Erin Ingraham Tuesday before shooting one and capturing the other.

Ingraham was rushed to the hospital after being attacked by two Stratfordshire terriers on Margaret Court in Lithonia.

According to police the child was playing in her own yard when the dogs attacked. They said it took about four minutes for a police sergeant to arrive to free the child from the animals.

"That sergeant had to forcibly remove those dogs from that child. Upon removing those dogs from that child, he stood there as a barrier between the dogs and the child," said Jason Gagnon of DeKalb Police.

One of the dogs was captured -- the other one shot and killed by that sergeant at the scene.

"The call came out about 4:06 and officers were here in three or four minutes, so three or four minutes being attacked by two vicious dogs can seem like an eternity. It did appear to be for quite some time," said Gagnon.

"I was saddened by it because my son gets off the bus and walks home, down this hill, every single day and that could have been my child," said Veronica Cook.

As Ingraham recovers -- police said the dogs' owner will face charges for the attack and neighbors said they have complained about the animals being too aggressive in the past.

One woman said the dogs mauled her cat and then attacked another neighbor.

"I was terrified. I thought about my poor neighbor and my cat and I just knew, those were the dogs that attacked that poor girl," said neighbor Anita Jones.