When Jodi Hudson went to the kennels to buy the stray bulldog she had fallen in love with, she was concerned at a sign warning it was “unsuitable” for children.
But staff assured her it would be OK for her and daughter Lexi, four, as long as she “didn’t allow it to jump up”.
Today, Jodi is grieving for Lexi after the dog went berserk and mauled the youngster to death.
The single mum has told close friends: “Lexi was my world and now she’s dead. I can’t go on. Life isn’t worth living right now.”
Jodi, 31, paid £100 for Aylestone bulldog Mulan after the rehoming centre advertised it with a photo on Facebook.
One pal said: “There was a poster of the dog inside the centre which stated underneath it was unsuitable for people with small children.
"But Jodi asked them about this and they said he’d be fine as long as he wasn’t allowed to jump up.
"She accepted this and bought the dog. She didn’t have any problems whatsoever with Mulan until the tragedy happened.
“Lexi loved the dog too. Jodi can’t believe it turned into a devil dog.”
The mum stabbed Mulan to death as it attacked Lexi at home on Tuesday, but she could not save her child.
Weeks earlier she wrote a Facebook message under a photo of the pet, which said “lovin my baby”.
Police spoke to the owners of Willow Tree Dog Rehoming Centre, in Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, after the tragedy in nearby Mountsorrel.
A manager yesterday confirmed the dog was sold to Jodi in September after it was picked up by council wardens.
But he added: “The cops have told us not to say anything.”
Weeks earlier she wrote a Facebook message under a photo of the pet, which said “lovin my baby”.
Police spoke to the owners of Willow Tree Dog Rehoming Centre, in Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, after the tragedy in nearby Mountsorrel.
A manager yesterday confirmed the dog was sold to Jodi in September after it was picked up by council wardens.
But he added: “The cops have told us not to say anything.”
Jodi yesterday released a statement which described Lexi as her “shining star in the sky”.
She had already lost a child after a full-term stillbirth several years ago.
Lexi’s devastated dad Jamie Branson, 38, of Loughborough, Leics, also paid tribute to his “lovely little girl” last night.
He said: “I’m grieving for my daughter. I loved her to bits.”
Lexi’s school in Mountsorrel brought in specialist grief counsellors to help her classmates come to terms with the tragedy.
David Williams, head at Christ Church and St Peter’s Church of England School, told how staff and pupils were left “devastated and saddened”.
It also emerged yesterday that Jodi had looked after a friend’s French mastiff, which was initially believed to have been the killer dog.
Leicestershire Police confirmed the animal that mauled Lexi was a bulldog and not listed in the Dangerous Dogs Act.
It also emerged yesterday that Jodi had looked after a friend’s French mastiff, which was initially believed to have been the killer dog.
Leicestershire Police confirmed the animal that mauled Lexi was a bulldog and not listed in the Dangerous Dogs Act.
The force said detectives had quizzed the rescue centre’s owners but were not treating the tragedy as a crime.
Leicester city council said Mulan was found wandering loose in a park and taken to the Willow Tree centre in August.
A spokesman said it was too early to say if the pound’s dog rehoming contract would now be cancelled.
(DailyMirror - Nov 7, 2013)
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