A police horse on patrol in east London has been left wounded after being attacked by a dog in a park.
The horse, named Urbane, suffered several injuries while two mounted officers were on duty in Victoria Park, in the borough of Tower Hamlets, on Wednesday.
Footage circulating on social media showed Urbane buckling as the dog clamped its jaws around its leg, refusing to release its grip for several seconds.
A man can be seen jabbing at the dog with a large stick as an officer is heard shouting “get hold of that dog”.
Another person eventually manages to pull the dog away, before the officer riding Urbane dismounts and shouts “get that lead on that dog now”.
The dog has been seized to be assessed, said the Metropolitan Police Task Force – which includes the mounted branch, dog support, marine policing and the territorial support group.
It tweeted pictures of the wounds Urbane had suffered on Thursday – showing several bite marks on his legs – along with the caption: “PH [Police Horse] Urbane was attacked by a dog off the lead in Victoria Park yesterday.
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“We can’t stress enough how important it is to keep dogs on a lead if you can’t recall them or get them under control,” said police.
Urbane has since been to the vets and is having some “well-earned recuperation”, the task force added.
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“He will hopefully be back on duty as soon as he has fully recovered but not before,” it said.
The task force also thanked the members of the public who tried to help the horse.
