Toddler Suffers Facial Nerve Damage After Dog Attack in Riverside County

A California toddler has suffered facial nerve damage after he was viciously attacked by a dog in Riverside County on Friday.

One-year-old Kaidyn Sutton suffered significant injuries in the incident, where a dog mauled the boy at Primrose Park, French Valley, at around 4 p.m, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

"He was running around in the grass playing when a dog...came out of nowhere and attacked him -- latched onto his face and just mauled him," according to the boy's grandfather, Glenn Garrett.

It left him with a large gash over his eyes.

He was taken for treatment at Loma Linda University Medical Center, and was operated on overnight. His mother Michaela Sutton said he may have long-term damage due to the attack.

"He is out they said he did great, he looks great. There may be some nerve damage in his forehead and they fixed one tendon that works one eyebrow but couldn't exactly pinpoint the other but (because) he's so little they hope it will grow back," Sutton said in a Facebook update.

"But he's doing great right now just waiting for him to wake up," Sutton added.

The boy does have nerve damage, Garrett confirmed to NBC4, and will likely require more surgery before he's fully rehabbed.

Sutton was with his mother in the park at the time of the incident. She rescued him before further damage could be done by the vicious animal, which was not wearing a collar or leash.

The dog was found Saturday afternoon. Animal Services officials said the 6-year-old Labrador mix was impounded shortly before 3 p.m. after it was identified by a witness at a home in unincorporated Riverside County.

The dog, named Dexter, will be held at the county’s San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus pending a hearing to determine if the dog is safe enough to be returned to the owner, officials said.

The grandfather, Glenn Garrett, said he hopes "the dog is put down to prevent this from happening to another child and tearing another family apart."

Neighbors seemed surprise, saying the dog was friendly.

Records show the dog has been vaccinated for rabies and microchipped. There were no records of prior incidents.

Correction: This post originally misidentified the park where the boy was allegedly attacked.

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