Hero bystander suffers horror injuries as he stops woman and newborn baby being attacked by three dogs

Daily Mail​

23-04-2025

A heroic young man has told how he was left with horror injuries – including the loss of function in two fingers – after he bravely leapt through a window to save a mother and her newborn baby from a vicious dog attack in Cardiff.
William Newbury, 22, had been dropping off gifts for a friend on Mother's Day when he was thrust into a terrifying ordeal – facing down three out-of-control Staffordshire bull terriers who were mauling a woman and her one-week-old baby inside a house in Llanrumney, South Wales.
Mr Newbury, from Roath, described the nightmare moment he peered through the letterbox and saw the horrifying scene unfold.
'It turned out to be the mother, I went up to the letterbox and looked through and saw the mum and the baby being attacked by three dogs,' he told the BBC.
With the door jammed shut, William desperately tried to distract the frenzied animals from outside – but only one turned its attention. The other two continued their attack.
William then spotted a ground floor window ajar – and without hesitation, he clambered through to get to the victims.
'Luckily there was a downstairs window that was open and I didn't even think about it, I went straight in,' he said.
But the dogs soon turned on him in a frenzied assault that left him bleeding, bruised and bitten all over his body.
'They were all targeting me, nothing I did was stopping them, I was hitting one of the dogs trying to get it to stop, but it didn't work,' he said, recalling how he stayed in the house for around 20 agonising minutes before emergency services arrived.
His injuries were so severe he was rushed to hospital and spent a week receiving treatment with wounds on his leg, hands, arm, side of face, stomach and lower back.
The brave bystander now faces a long road to recovery and has been told he'll never regain full use of part of his hand.
The mother and baby were also taken to hospital and treated for injuries which were not life-threatening.
Despite his ordeal, William says he's determined not to let fear take hold – but admits the trauma has left its mark.
'I refuse to be scared of dogs, but if a dog comes up to me now, I do step out of its way. I've already had one counselling session to get over this, I've had nightmares, I can replay the whole situation in my head, it's horrible,' he said.
South Wales Police confirmed that officers were called to the incident on March 30.
All three Staffordshire bull terriers involved were destroyed, though no arrests have been made.
A spokesperson said all three victims suffered injuries that required medical attention, but thankfully none were life threatening.