A DOG breeder whose two American bulldogs savaged him while he took them for a walk has had an arm amputated.

People came out of their houses in High Pittington, County Durham, to try to stop Stephen Potts's dogs mauling him, and they beat the frenzied pets with golf clubs, umbrellas and cricket bats.

Residents tried to run the dogs over as they bit their 47-year-old owner and would not let go, dragging him around the street.

One witness said he had never seen anything "so vicious and brutal" in his life.

Mr Potts, who sells American bulldogs and keeps them in a plot behind his house in Low Pittington, was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne, following the Sunday evening attack.

His father Geoffrey told BBC Radio Tees: "Stephen is recovering. He is in a stable condition at the minute.

"We are just going day-to-day at the minute.

"He has had his right arm amputated and everything else is satisfactory."

Mr Potts thanked the people who helped his son, including the local residents, police, ambulance crew and hospital staff.

One of the dogs was shot dead by police marksmen after it went on the loose following the attack, while the other was caught and is being kept in kennels while a decision is made about its fate.

It is believed the dogs might have been frightened when fireworks went off.