A schoolgirl was savaged to death by four dogs yesterday as she ate lunch at a friend’s house.
It is thought the two Staffordshire bull terriers, a bull mastiff and an American bulldog went berserk when Jade Lomas-Anderson, 14, began eating a meat pie.
As they tried to grab the pie, they bit her throat and Jade, who was alone in the house, was unable to fight them off.
Police using riot shields stormed the house in Atherton, Wigan, before marksmen killed the snarling animals.
But by the time officers reached Jade she was dead on the floor, bleeding from bite marks all over her body.
Neighbours said she had been staying with her friend Kimberley Concannon for the first few days of the Easter holidays.
The dogs were owned by Kimberley’s mother, Beverley, who referred to them as ‘her babies’ although a sign on the house reads: ‘Beware of the Dog... enter at your own risk’.
Neighbours said Jade’s horrific death was a ‘tragedy waiting to happen’ and that the dogs used to growl and bark at anyone who came near the terraced house.
One resident said: ‘The dogs were really scary – Staffies and bull mastiffs. Jade knew these animals so I don’t know why they all went for her. These animals were a menace and everyone was scared of them. It is shocking.’
Another neighbour said: ‘She had gone to the shops to buy a meat pie and took it back to the house with her.
‘We heard the dogs went for her as she tried to eat the pie. She tried to fend one of the animals off but apparently it went berserk and went for her throat. Apparently she was then overwhelmed by the animals inside the house.’
A friend of Jade said: ‘At least two of the other dogs joined in and started biting her legs.’
Police were called to the house at 2pm after reports that the teenager had been seen lying unconscious in a downstairs room.
When officers arrived they found four dogs rampaging out of control around the property.
Destroyed: A male Staffordshire Bull Terrier (left) and bull mastiff Neo (right)
Put down: Buddy, an American bulldog, was one of the dogs destroyed by armed police
Armed police were called out and had to shoot the four dogs so officers could get inside the house. A fifth dog was contained in a separate room and had not been involved in the attack.
Despite attempts to resuscitate Jade, she was later pronounced dead.
Police said Jade’s injuries ‘were consistent with her having been attacked by dogs’.
A post-mortem examination was being carried out last night to establish the exact cause of death.
Jade lived nearby with her family and attended Fred Longworth High School in Tyldesley.
A neighbour said: ‘It’s such a tragedy. Jade was a loveable rogue who liked a laugh and a joke. She was a lovely girl.’
Jade lived with her family in a nearby house and was a pupil at Fred Longworth High School in Tyldesley
Jade was believed to have been staying with friends when the tragedy occurred
Tragic: A Facebook photo of Jade Anderson who was found dead at a house in Atherton
Another resident said: ‘Those dogs were always growling and barking in this tiny house.
‘All the local kids were scared stiff of them all. I’m not surprised this has happened to Jade - it was a tragedy waiting to happen.’
Mrs Concannon’s Facebook profile picture is a photograph of the bull mastiff, Neo, which she described as ‘my baby’.
She described the dog as too protective and said it ‘doesn’t like youngsters or screaming’ but added that she’d had it castrated calm him down.’
The other dogs destroyed were an American bulldog called Buddy and two Staffordshire bull terriers – one male, one female.
In a message about Jade’s death on Facebook, Paula Carden wrote: ‘She was staying at her friends and it’s the families dogs who attacked her. You will be probably know who’s dogs they were.’
Hayley Hughes said: ‘Jade was one of my best mate…. sat here in tears!’
Police forensics officers arrive to investigate the scene where a 14-year-old girl was found dead amid five aggressive dogs
An officer stands guard at a police cordon near the house. Police have said it is 'too early to speculate' about what took place
Police have said it was 'too early to speculate about what took place' at the house in Atherton
Tributes: A friend leaves flowers and a teddy bear outside the home where Jade Anderson died
Leanne Marie Smith said: ‘RIP Jade Anderson such a beautiful girl, savaged by dogs! whoever owned them wants putting down because if it was one of my kids I’d be doing a long time in prison for killing them myself!’
Milly Lewis said: ‘No one deserves to be taken so young and in such a horrific way, rest In peace Jade Anderson x.’
Jade’s death follows a number of similar dog attacks in recent years.
In 2009, three-and-a-half-month-old Jaden Mack was killed by a Staffordshire bull terrier and a Jack Russell at his grandmother’s home in Ystrad Mynach, South Wales.
The same year, John-Paul Massey, four, died at his grandmother’s house in Liverpool after suffering “massive injuries” inflicted by a pitbull, a banned breed.
In November, eight-day-old Harry Harper died from a head injury after being bitten by the family Jack Russell in Telford, Shropshire.
Seven people, including five children, have been killed by dogs in homes since 2007, according to a report published last month by the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee.
The Government has announced that microchipping will become compulsory and dog owners will also face prosecution if an animal attacks anyone in their home.
Officers found the body and were confronted by 'aggressive and out of control dogs', four of which have now been destroyed
A police forensic officer investigates the scene where 14-year-old Jade Anderson was found dead. There was a warning sign on the side of the fence
Closed: Police cordoned off Chaucer Grove where the body of Jade Anderson was found today
SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT BE DOING MORE TO PROTECT THE PUBLIC FROM DANGEROUS DOGS?
The dangerous Dogs Act 1991 was introduced after a series vicious attacks on children by pit bull terriers.
The act bans breeding and sale of four breeds: pit bull terriers, Japanese tosas, fila brasileiro and dogo argentino.
It is illegal to possess such dogs without a certificate of exemption, which is given only after the dog is neutered, insured, and has a transponder implanted beneath its skin.
They must also be muzzled in public places and be led by a person over the age of 16.
There are an estimated 5,000 dog attacks on British Telecom, Royal Mail and Parcel Force staff in England every year.
Postal workers union the CWU estimate that 70 per cent of the attacks on their staff happen on private property.
They have also said the police will have more powers to investigate attacks.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has set out plans to make it compulsory for all dogs in England to be microchipped from 2016 and extend laws governing dog attacks to cover incidents on private property.
Officials estimate around 210,000 people are attacked by dogs in England every year.
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