"Service dog" attacks little girl after she won't give it her pizza. Real service dogs don't attack little kids over food.

NEW YORK -- A court hearing on April 10 will determine the fate of a dog which attacked a toddler Sunday at a village residence.

The incident occurred about 5:45 p.m. as Candice Amrhein was eating some leftover pizza. The dog, named Barklee, belonged to a friend who was staying with Amrhein and her family.

The dog wanted pizza, and Amrhein shooed the canine away.

The animal approached again shortly afterward. Amrhein’s 2-year-old daughter Emilee tried to tell it “No” herself, when it latched without warning onto the toddler’s head.

Amrhein and her brother fought to get the dog off the girl. She pulled, while her brother punched the animal in the head, until it released its grip.

Then her brother kicked the friend and dog — described as a mixed breed service animal, with Lab, pit, shepherd and husky ancestry — out of the apartment, while Amrhein called 911.

[Another "service dog" attacking. Wanna bet that this is one of those fake service dogs?]

Emilee was taken by ambulance to United Memorial Medical Center, and then transferred to Strong Memorial Hospital. She had 14 puncture wounds, and received five stitches.

“She’s going to be fine, but in that minute he took, he did a lot of damage and it could have been worse, especially if nobody was around to help her,” Amrhein said. “ He could have killed her. He was whipping her around pretty hard.”

The unprovoked attack shocked the family. Amrhein said she never leaves her daughter alone with dogs, and the canine didn’t have any problems before. She said she was petrified during the incident, and Emilee was bleeding when she picked her up.

She and the owner are still friends, but she would like the dog euthanized. Amrhein’s mother, Lora Weaver, of Batavia, said she’s highly skeptical of the canine’s service dog certification.

No charges have been filed against the owner, due to the nature of the attack, said Attica Police Chief John Palillo. The canine was in a residence with adults present, and attacked on its own without warning.

The friend is no longer staying with the Amrheins. The dog has been returned to the woman, pending the court hearing.

(The Daily News Online-Apr 3, 2014)