A pit bull attacked a 4-year-old in Riverdale Wednesday morning.
The attack happened a little after 8 a.m. on Foster Avenue. Police tell News 12 that the dog bit the girl on her face and neck. She was rushed to NYC Health+Hospitals/Jacobi in critical condition, but is now listed in stable condition.
Authorities believe the dog pushed his way through his owner's fence and then attacked the girl, who had just left her house with her mother to go to school.
Residents say they heard screams from their window.
News 12 is told that a neighbor struck the pit bull dozens of times with a bat to get the animal off the girl.
Neighbors say they often saw the pit bull in its owner's yard and that the dog didn't seem dangerous.
Police tell News 12 that the pit bull was isolated and contained at the scene. The dog is now at the ASPCA.