Folkestone XL Bully attack: First picture of 8-month-old girl seriously hurt as family dog 'snapped'

Emergency services scrambled to the scene in Hawkinge near Folkestone, Kent, following reports a toddler had been attacked by a dog - and she was airlifted to a specialist London hospital

This is the eight-month-old baby airlifted to hospital after she was attacked by a dog - thought to be a registered XL Bully breed.

Stephanie Coombs, 33, revealed her great niece, little Arabella Williams, was airlifted to Kings College Hospital in south London after the dog "snapped". She said Arabella was in a stable condition in the intensive care unit and that it had been "touch and go". She also said the dog, an XL Bully named Hunter, had been shot by police in the front room after the animal "just snapped" and attacked the baby.

The 1990s three-bedroomed house where the attack happened on Wednesday was today taped off by police. A uniformed police officer stood guard outside the property while a police van was also parked on the driveway. Stephanie confirmed that Hunter was an XL Bully. She said: “I don’t know what happened but the dog just snapped.

“Hunter, the dog, and the baby got on so well. It’s so out of character for the dog. It was so soppy. We used to think he was like Scooby Do! They used to get in the travel cot together. He would sniff the baby and wander off."

She added: “They shot the dog in the living room. They took the dog out in a body bag.” Stephanie added: “It’s absolutely shocking. You don’t expect this to happen to family.

“That baby is her mum’s world. She’s up with her at the hospital by her bedside. It was touch and go. We just hope she’s ok. It’s such an upsetting situation." Police say they arrested two people in connection with the incident. An 18-year-old man and a 76-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control.

A Kent Police spokesperson said: "Kent Police was called at 2.23pm on Wednesday to a report that an infant had been bitten by a dog inside a property on Siskin Close, Hawkinge near Folkestone. Officers attended along with South East Coast Ambulance Service and an eight month old girl was airlifted to a London hospital where she remains in a serious condition.

"The dog was seized and destroyed. An 18-year-old man and a 76-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control. They remain in custody while enquiries continue."