An eleven-year-old boy said he feared a police dog would rip him apart after it pounced on him and sank its teeth into his shoulder.

Awais Ijaz was left in pain and in need of hospital treatment after being attacked by the dog while he played with friends.

The youngster was in the grounds of Bradford Grammar School when the German Shepherd dog - being exercised by its handler - attacked.

Now Awais's family, who say there was no provocation for the attack, is taking legal advice and his uncle Arshid Mahmood says he should now get compensation from the police.

Awais, who lives with his mother in Frizinghall Road, Frizinghall, Bradford, said: "I was just playing with my friends when the dog just came up and bit me. I was very frightened.

"It held me for a couple of seconds in its mouth, and I thought it was going to rip me apart. It was only when the policeman arrived that he made it let go.

The boy had only just returned from a holiday to visit his father who works in Saudi Arabia. He said: "There aren't really any dogs in Saudi Arabia, I'm more used to cats, but now I'm really scared of any dogs I see."

A police sergeant took the youngster, who was bleeding from his bite wounds, back to his family's house.

Police today confirmed they were investigating the incident.

Mr Mahmood said: "That dog should be put down so that it doesn't do it to anybody else. I feel very angry about this. He is a lovely child."

Awais was taken to Bradford Royal Infirmary where he was treated for three puncture wounds to his shoulder and given an anti-tetanus injection.

Mr Mahmood, from Frizinghall, who is Awais's legal guardian said the youngster had been left frightened and shattered following the attack.

"He's now having trouble sleeping, and eating - he's very upset about it," he said. "This dog could have killed him if he'd bitten anywhere nearer his neck."

His said he had seen officers exercising their dogs in the grounds before, but he added: "They should be kept by them and on the lead. Nothing like this has happened before that I know of but there are always children playing there. We have talked to a solicitor because we want some compensation for him - it should not have happened."

A Bradford police spokeswoman said dog handlers were allowed to exercise their animals in the school grounds.

"An incident involving a police dog and an 11-year-old did happen and it is the subject of a vigorous investigation," she said.

Bradford Grammar School headmaster Stephen Davidson said he was not aware of the incident which happened at 3.45pm but confirmed that police dog handlers were allowed to exercise their animals in the ground.

"It is private property but we are aware that we are a school within this particular community and we allow the children informal access to the grounds," he said.

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