Barry Gillingwater, of DSS Animal Management, said the dog had been in its Manukau pound for two months after an earlier attack in the area.
He said the attack on the officer, which happened two weeks ago, lasted 20 seconds before the dog was beaten off.
"Two officers had just dropped off another dog and saw the handler leading this dog," Gillingwater said.
"They knew all about it because we brief all our staff so they kept to one side, out of the way, as the handler walked past with the dog on lead.
"Then with no warning, the dog lunged at one of them and attacked her, severely damaging the calf muscle on her leg. The dog was beaten off by the other staff and while it was groggy they put it into a cage and called the ambulance and administered first aid."
Gillingwater said the injured officer had spent a week in Middlemore after the attack but the first skin grafted failed so she returned last week.
He said surgeons hoped the second graft would succeed so that her calf could be reconstructed after Christmas. "It was a very severe injury but luckily it didn't damage bone or arteries or she could have lost her leg. It virtually removed the calf muscle the gap was bigger [than a] cricket ball.
"It was huge bite. It was the worst I have seen in 20 years in the industry."
Gillingwater said the dog had a "long history of aggressive behaviour" but they had not been permitted to destroy it until after the attack on the officer.
The dog had been subject to section 71 of the Dog Control Act, which stated that it had to stay in the pound until its future was decided by a court ruling after the earlier attack.
Nelson animal control officer John Bergman said he was shocked by the attack and insisted that the law needed to be changed so that dangerous dogs could be destroyed without waiting for the courts.
The judicial process often took too long, exposing animal control officers working in pounds to unnecessary danger, he said.
"The Dog Control Act 1996 says that if a dog attacks someone or something you can destroy it to stop the attack," Bergman said.
"But if you stop the attack you can't destroy the dog immediately unless you have the owner's consent and that's obviously what happened in Auckland.
"The act works in some ways because it stops cowboys destroying dogs when they don't need to, but they should have been able to put this dog down. They shouldn't have to wait months for a court ruling when the dog is so obviously a big threat."
Gillingwater agreed the act needed revising, saying they did not need a court ruling to tell them the dog should have been destroyed.
"This dog was a mix of all the aggressive-type breeds plus it was a very large, extremely powerful dog picture a pitbull-bull mastiff the size of a Great Dane. We are the busiest dog pound in New Zealand and we come across some of the most aggressive dogs in the country and this dog was one of the nastiest we have ever had the misfortune to meet.
"When something that large decided to pull without warning, from walking placidly on a leash to lunging, it's hard to stop.
"She didn't let go of the leash but it was extremely hard to control and the damage was done in less than 20 seconds."
(Stuff - Nov 29, 2011)
