A mum said she now cries herself to sleep after her ear was ripped off by a rottweiler at a Somerset caravan park.
Steff John was enjoying a family holiday at a caravan park near Brean when the savage attack left her permanently disfigured.
The 28-year-old from Brynmawr, Wales was rushed to hospital but ended losing most of her right ear despite doctors' efforts.
After two operations and a skin graft, the mother of three is now fearful of going outside alone, reports Wales Online .
Steff and her husband Simon had been visiting their caravan site in Brean throughout the summer.
On Friday (August 16) at about 9pm, Steff was walking through the site with a friend when they saw a man walking a rottweiler on a lead.
"We asked this gentleman if we could stroke his dog and he said fine," Steff said.
"As I went forwards it just launched itself at me. I literally just touched it.
"The man pulled at the lead and it pulled most of my ear off.
"I automatically grabbed my ear and I saw the blood and that was it. I fell to the floor."
Steff said the man left the scene with the dog, while her friend attempted to carry her to the caravan.
Back at the caravan, the group contacted site security, the police and the ambulance service.
"Everything was really a blur then," Steff said. "I just remember not hearing anything and that was all."
Steff was then rushed Southmead Hospital where doctors attempted to save her ear.
Video below explains dangerous dog laws:
'It's had a massive impact'
At the hospital, doctors decided the part of the ear that had been ripped off could not be safely reattached.
Steff has since had two operations and a portion of skin grafted from her shoulder.
The trauma of what happened has meant she won't be able to take up a job offer at a local school this September.
"I'm terrified of dogs now and my hair is falling out," she said. "I think it is stress. Every time I wash my hair it's falling out in lumps.
"I think now it is worse than at the time. My nine-year-old doesn't like looking at me at the moment. He asks me to keep my hair down."
Steff's husband Simon, 48, said: "I think it has had a massive impact on us really.
"I don't like letting her out of my sight now. It is heartbreaking when she's crying herself to sleep.
"She won't go out. It's just hard at the moment."
A gofundme campaign has been set up to help Steffi get the best possible medical treatment in her recovery. You can help her by donating here.
Police statement
A spokeswoman for Avon and Somerset Constabulary said: "Police are investigating after a woman suffered significant injuries in a dog attack at a holiday park in Brean.
"It happened at about 8.45pm on Friday (August 16) at the site. The woman, 28, was visiting from her home in Brynmawr.
"The dog bit the side of her face, damaging her ear. She was taken to hospital by ambulance and needs ongoing hospital treatment.
"A man who had the dog on a lead at the time ran from the scene after the incident and left the holiday park the same day."
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