A WOMAN whose Rottweiler was given a bravery award for saving her from a fire died because she refused to see a doctor after the dog bit her on the hand.
Lesley Banks, 51, did not seek medical treatment after ten-year-old Brannigan nipped her because she feared he would be put down.
She treated the wound with bleach and antiseptic wipes instead and it appeared to be healing after the attack. But the next day she became ill with diarrhoea and vomiting because the wound had become infected, and she developed septicaemia. Her friend finally persuaded her to contact a doctor but, by then she had only hours to live.
An inquest into Miss Banks’ death heard that the former landlady had been bitten as she put Brannigan in the back of her car after a pheasant shoot in Craswall, Herefordshire.
The county’s deputy coroner, Roland Wooderson, said: "Dog owners should be aware of the possible outcomes from bites. Miss Banks had been bitten by her dog before with no lasting ill effects.”
The inquest heard Brannigan was nominated for the award after a fire started in the living quarters of the Three Horseshoes pub in Wheathill, Bridgnorth, Shropshire, where Miss Banks was the landlady, in October 2009. Brannigan managed to wake her by tugging on her arm as the flat filled with smoke, and they were able to escape.
One of her friends told the inquest "Brannigan meant everything to Lesley. He was hailed a hero after he saved Lesley from a fire at her pub. If he hadn’t woken her up she would almost certainly have died; it’s so tragic she died after he bit her.
"He was a big gentle giant, he never meant any harm and Lesley would never hear a word against him. She didn’t see a doctor because she thought if it came out that Brannigan bit her, the authorities would either take him away or he would be put to sleep.”
The inquest heard that Brannigan has been put to sleep.