A two-year-old girl is having surgery in the Bay of Plenty after she was mauled by a dog. It was the second such incident on Saturday.
Whakatane hospital says the child was admitted on Saturday night and is in a stable condition.
It's not known what sort of dog attacked her, but Kawerau District Mayor Malcolm Campbell says it has been impounded and its fate will be decided soon.
A four-year-old girl will also needed reconstructive surgery after
being bitten in the face by a bull mastiff while visiting a family home in Masterton earlier in the day.
Police say the child had been patting the pet dog, under the supervision of an adult, before it attacked her.
The girl is in a stable condition in Hutt hospital.
Police say the animal will be destroyed and the owner will face a charge under the Dog Control Act.
Acting Sergeant Tony Matheson said the incident shows the need to be very careful around dogs, especially with young children.
Call for certain types of dogs to be banned
The father of Carolina Anderson, the seven-year-old viciously mauled by a dog in 2003, is calling for certain types of dogs to be banned in New Zealand.
John Anderson was instrumental in bringing about a major reform of dog-control laws following his own daughter's mauling, but says that reform didn't go far enough.
He says he would like to see a complete ban of these dangerous dogs.
