A GUIDE dog has been injured after an attack in Dudley town centre.

Karl Denning and his assistance dog Quasia were walking along High Street on Monday afternoon when she was bitten by another dog.

Mr Denning, who is visually impaired, said: "Quasia was on my left-hand side as usual, guiding me, when all of a sudden I felt her kick back and try to move in front of me, then I heard another dog."

The dog, believed to be a Staffordshire bull terrier, latched on to the seven-year-old German Shephard's ear, which resulted in a tear and puncture wound that was pouring with blood.

"The owner managed to get hold of his dog and a lot of people came to help," Mr Denning said.

"We were pretty much surrounded to stop the dog getting back to Quasia.

"The chap just said sorry and walked off.

"It was a bit of a shock and really upsetting to say the least - at the end of the day, she's part of my independence.

"Luckily the police had turned up for another incident and one of the officers came over to make sure we were ok and a PCSO got us to the vets."

Quasia, who is now sporting a bandage on her head, is physically on the road to recovery but Mr Denning is worried she may be psychologically affected by the attack.

Once her injuries have healed, Quasia will undergo an official assessment with the Guide Dogs charity to see if she is fit to continue working.

Mr Denning said: "On average, eleven guide dogs are attacked each month and out of those, six never work again. If Quasia is unable to work, I've been told I wouldn't be able to keep her if I wanted another guide dog. It would be a difficult decision as we've built up such a bond - we're together 24 hours a day."

in a bid to minimise fears, Mr Denning has continued to walk Quasia through the town centre and socialise her with other dogs.

The pair will also be supported by dog behaviouralist Sarah Harris, who will join them for walks and introduce Quasia to a variety of breeds.

The founder of Dudley-based charity Raven's Rescue, who is offering her time free-of-charge, said: "She'll be given all the time and help she needs and so will Karl."

A West Midlands Police spokesman told the News that enquiries were ongoing and urged anyone who witnessed the incident to call 101.