A mother has warned people to beware of a 'growling, snarling' dog after she said she saw it try to bite a man in a Wymondham road.

Camilla Leveridge‎, 30, was walking with her three-year-old son, Sonny, at the junction of Norwich Road and Postmill Close this morning (Tuesday, February 7) when she saw the incident take place.

Mrs Leveridge‎ then had an exchange with the dog's owner. She said the animal was on a lead, but it didn't have a muzzle.

She said: 'The dog jumped out and tried to bite an elderly man's hand as he walked past it.

'My son could have been skipping along, as he does, and that dog was about the height of his shoulder.

'If I had been three steps closer, the dog could have taken his shoulder off.

'If a dog is vicious, then I think walking it without a muzzle where other people are is pretty horrendous.'

Mrs Leveridge‎, who lives in Wymondham, said she confronted the dog-walker after she saw it try to bite the elderly man.

She said: 'I told him he should have a muzzle on that dog, and he said 'yeah, I know'. He didn't deny it. I said you should go down to the pet shop and buy one, but he said he couldn't be bothered to go down there.

'Then I asked him for his name and said I wanted to report him to the dog warden, and he just ignored me.

'Then he crossed over the road and went down Orchard Way.'

Mrs Leveridge‎ said she wanted to warn others to avoid the dog, which she described as a brindle-coloured Staffie cross.

She said: 'I jumped out my skin and pulled my son away as we were about to walk past it.

'If it had bit my son I don't think I would have been able to control myself.'

Mrs Leveridge said she reported the incident to the police and the council.

There are no laws in the UK that forbid to walk with a dog unmuzzled.

But if someone makes a complaint about a specific dog to the police or council, its owners could be ordered to muzzle it in public, attend dog training classes, or have it microchipped or neutered. Failure to comply can lead to a fine of up to £20,000.

Have you had an encounter with a dangerous dog? Email stuart.anderson@archant.co.uk