The 20-year-old's left ear was torn from the side of his head, leaving only a bloodied earlobe attached, and he also suffered puncture wounds to his leg during the horrific attack in October last year.
He was walking his dog Costa through the streets of East Hills, in Sydney's southwest, when he saw two American Staffordshire terriers running aggressively towards him.
"They started attacking my dog ... once I picked him up they bit my leg, and they were still trying to jump up and bite my dog," he told The Daily Telegraph yesterday.
"When I bent down to look at my leg they bit my ear off."
The two attacking dogs, Billy and Angel, were chased back to their nearby home where William Sacilotto had left them with a friend while he went out.
Bankstown Council staff eventually captured and put down the dogs, although police initially had to hold them at bay with their weapons drawn due to their aggressive behaviour after the attack.
Mr Arthur was rushed to hospital but his severed ear couldn't be reattached due to the extent of the damage, although doctors counted him lucky to be alive.
Yesterday Sacilotto pleaded guilty in Bankstown Court to owning the dogs behind the shocking attack. His lawyer Saba El-Hanania said the victim should have known the animals could be dangerous and not bent down towards them.
He said the dogs had probably escaped through an unlocked front door and their destruction had been part of a "devastating period" for the 21-year-old owner.
"He has gone to a lot of effort to make sure these dogs are well mannered," Mr El-Hanania said.
Magistrate Bruce Williams said he was "surprised" the only option available to punish Sacilotto was a fine as he noted the injury done to the victim.
"If these dogs are known to be dangerous, there is an absolute responsibility on your part," Mr Williams said.
Sacilotto was fined $4400 and ordered to pay $2000 to cover the council's costs.
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| Dog owner William Sacilotto leaving Banktown Court Pic: Ross Schultz Source: The Daily Telegraph |
But Mr Arthur said it was unfair the dogs had "got it so much harder" than their owner and he knew he would be left wearing the scars of the attack for the rest of his life.
"It is his fault, too, not just the dogs' - they lost their lives and he's just got a $4000 fine," Mr Arthur said.
"There's surgery that I can have done but I'm not 100 per cent sure ... it will never look 100 per cent like my other ear."
Mr Arthur and his family, who were in court to support him for yesterday's decision, are still weighing up on suing Sacilotto for damages and his medical bills from the incident.
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| One of William Sacilotto's dogs, which was later destroyed. Source: The Daily Telegraph |
He also said he was now more wary when out in public with his own dog and he couldn't understand why people still let their pets go loose, oblivious to the consequences.
Bankstown Mayor Khal Asfour said the dogs should not have been allowed to escape and roam the streets and he hoped the case would serve as "a lesson to others".
(Herald Sun - July 17, 2013)
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