A HOUSEWIFE has been ordered to do six months community service after her dog attacked a postman so viciously he feared for his life.

Tina Jones’ German Shepherd Reggie escaped from her home in Aylesham Road, Orpington, and attacked postman Yiannakos Theodosszou on the pavement outside on June 23.

The dog leapt on him and bit his back and left hip, piercing the flesh to the bone. He needed hospital treatment for the injuries, which kept him off work for two weeks.

Jones, aged 36, was sentenced at Bromley Magistrates’ Court today (August 18) after previously admitting a charge of allowing her dog to be dangerously out of control in a public place.

The mother-of-four was ordered to do 60 hours unpaid work over six months and pay Mr Theodosszou £1,000 compensation, and a contingent destruction order was made in relation to the dog.

This means Reggie will only be destroyed if Jones fails to take measures to prevent him escaping again or keep him on a lead, muzzled and supervised in public places.

In a statement read to the court, Mr Theodosszou described his fear during the attack, saying: “I really did think that my life was over, that the dog would maul me to death.”

Margaret Hyde, mitigating, said Reggie had escaped the house because Jones had unintentionally left the door open when returning home with a pushchair.

Miss Hyde said Jones has had the dog castrated and enrolled in a training course since the attack, and has also written a letter of apology to Mr Theodosszou.

In Mr Theodosszou’s statement to the court, he described how the terrifying attack unfolded after the dog came sprinting out of the house and leapt on him.

He said: “The dog bit into my back and the weight of the dog pushed me forward. As I leaned forward the dog dropped down from my back and then took a second bite, into my left hip.

“I knew that it had drawn blood. I was in so much pain, screaming out, but I was still able to stand and I managed to twist my body round to push the dog off me to get it to release its grip.”

As the dog jumped down and Mr Theodosszou dropped to his knees in agony, Jones’ came out of the house and managed to get the animal inside.

An ambulance was called and the postman was taken to Princess Royal University Hospital, where he was given a tetanus shot and his wounds were treated.