CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WIVB) — A 9-year-old boy had half of his finger bitten off by a dog at Cheektowaga Town Park Wednesday.

Police say the boy was holding on to a fence when a dog lunged at his hand. The dog, described as a tan pitbull, was reportedly dragging a woman who was handling it with a leash. The woman is described as being white, and in her 20’s.

The dog bit the boy’s finger between the tip and knuckle, detaching it completely. The portion of the finger that was severed was recovered from the incident, but was unable to be reattached by doctors.

Cheektowaga Assistant Police Chief James Speyer says, “We just want to make sure that the dog isn’t rabid, doesn’t have rabies, and that it has all the shots and vaccinations that it should have, so we’re concerned for the boy’s welfare, and hopefully he doesn’t have to go through any kind of rabies shots because of this.”

The owner immediately left the scene with the dog. Any witnesses are asked to contact Cheektowaga Police at 686-3500.