Lucknow, May 10 (IANS): In yet another incident this year, a six-year-old girl was attacked by a pet French Mastiff in Lucknow's Bulaki Adda area.

The child sustained multiple injuries and is receiving treatment at the Balrampur district hospital.

"The incident took place on Tuesday afternoon when the victim, Ekra, was playing outside the house. Suddenly the pet dog came and attacked her," said Nargis Salmani, her mother.

"She fell down and cried for help, after which locals intervened and tried to shoo away the dog but it again attacked her," she said.

"Hearing her cries, many people came out, including the owner's son who took the dog away. If locals had not acted in time, the attack could have been fatal."

The girl has a two-inch-long open wound on her back.

City-based veterinarian Rajneesh Chandra said: "The pet may be in an adolescence period, and during that time, dogs show aggression. The other reason could be the fact that the dog was living in a confined area and was having mood swings after not getting enough space."

Chief veterinary officer, LMC, Dr Abhinav Verma, said: "After getting information, our team reached the spot and found that the owner does not have any licence for keeping the pet. We will penalize the owner for violating rules and also check the dog's behaviour."

He added that the dog was vaccinated and it had also attacked the daughter of the house-help employed by the family.

The treatment of the young girl is being paid for by the owners. Parents of the girl have decided not to pursue the matter further.

Joint director of municipal corporation, A.K. Rao, had earlier urged people to not keep a few breeds of dogs -- including American Pitbull, Husky, Doberman, and a few others -- as pets in their homes.

Last year in July, an 82-year-old woman had been brutally attacked by her own Pitbull which led to her death in Lucknow.