AN EIGHT-year-old girl was left in need of surgery after being attacked by a dog in an Andover shop.

Mollie Montgomery was out with her family shopping for a fancy dress outfit on the afternoon of Saturday, July 13, when a dog attacked her, injuring her lip.

She was taken to Southampton hospital where she underwent a procedure the following day to stitch her top lip back together.

Speaking the week after the incident, her mother Sophie said: “She’s got her mouth stitched up. She’s going to be scarred. She can’t talk, she can barely eat.”

She added: “She’s full of beans usually, but she’s a bit of a shell at the moment because it’s just been such a shock for her.”

The incident has left Mollie missing two to three millimetres of her top lip. Her injuries will be reviewed in a year’s time to determine whether further corrective surgery is required.

Sophie added: “I think the whole thing has really affected her.

“Not just because of the physical wounds but the emotional wounds.”

Police confirmed the incident took place and have since issued the following statement.

It read: “It was reported that an eight-year-old girl was bitten by a dog at a shop in Junction Road, Andover. This took place between 3pm and 3.30pm on July 13.

“The girl suffered injuries to her lip. We have liaised with the dog warden and enquiries are ongoing.”

Sophie says the attack took place in the Andover Fancy Dress and Fireworks shop in Junction Road. She and Mollie, who live in Guildford, were visiting family who live in Middle Wallop.

They had been in town looking for wigs and a top hat for a fancy dress party. Once in the shop, Mollie went to look at the fireworks cabinet.

She said: “About three seconds later she [Mollie] came running towards me with her hand over her mouth. At first I thought she might have slipped because I didn’t know there was a dog in there.”

She added: “The first thing I knew about the dog was when my daughter came running towards me with blood running down her mouth.

“It’s just a horrific event and when you go into an environment like a party shop it’s the last thing you expect.”

The owner of Andover Fancy Dress and Fireworks, where the incident was reported to have taken place, was contacted multiple times for a comment but had not responded by the time the Advertiser went to print.

A staff member confirmed an incident had taken place but was unable to provide further comment.