HAYDEN, ID. -- A 3-year-old North Idaho girl was rushed to the hospital Sunday after a dog bit her face at Finucane Park in Hayden.
Dogs are not allowed in public parks in Hayden and the girl's parents are upset the boxer was there.
The sign in Finucane says "No Dogs Allowed In Park" but the man taking care of the dog says he didn't see it.
His boxer was tied to a leash to a garbage can. Jordyn Cox, 3, reached out to pet the dog, and it bit her dangerously close to her eye. It's possible she'll have lasting vision problems.
The owner declined to go on camera with KREM 2 News but he has been cited for harboring a vicious animal and having the dog in the park.
Kootenai County Animal Control insists the dog will not be put down.
"In this case the dog didn't go out of it's way to attack a child. It's basically doing what a dog would do when startled," says animal control official Karen Williams.
Despite Jordyn's bruised face, her mother is okay with the dog not being put down, although other members of her family disagree.
"Every time a big dog is inches away she backs away and hides behind one of us," says her mother Jewel Matthews. "I'm really scared she will be really scared of dogs for a long time."
