Toddler seriously hurt after attack by Florida family's pet boxer

PLANT CITY, FL (KTRK) -- A child was taken to Tampa General Hospital with serious injuries after being attacked by the family dog, ABC affiliate WFLA-TV reports.

A Hillsborough County detective was helping a business owner when both of them spotted a 50-pound boxer outside with something in its mouth. From a distance, it looked like the dog was playing with a towel.

"The dog had just turned at a different angle and I could see what he was dragging around and it just hit me, oh my God its a child," said business owner Teresa Budd.

The deputy ran towards the boxer, which then dropped the child from its mouth and ran towards a home. Budd went to the front door of the home where she found the 2-year-old's mother.

"I pointed to the yard and she said, oh my god yes bambino and she ran out to the child, she was horrified like any mother would be to see their child in that condition," Budd told WFLA-TV.

The child was airlifted to Tampa General Hospital where he is listed in serious but stable condition.

Animal services were then called to the scene. The dog, named "Cookie", is the family's pet. She and her puppies were turned over to animal services.