Click the play button on the video window to the right to see the storyEL MIRAGE, AZ -- Authorities have found the body of a missing pit bull that attacked a family in the northwest Valley Sunday night, sending a 3-year-old boy and his parents to the hospital.
The attack happened about 9 p.m. in El Mirage near the 11500 block of West Columbine, according to a police statement.
"It was like a horror film," said Christina Ortega, mother of 3-year-old Ismael, who was bitten several times by the dog. "I couldn't believe what was happening."
The Ortegas were visiting friends for a Father's Day barbeque in the area when a white pit bull walked into a backyard through a partially open gate.
"The kids started yelling, 'The dog, the dog, the dog, get him out,'" Ortega said.
The dog then attacked Ismael, grabbing him by the back of his head before he could run toward his mother.
The toddler received several stitches and had a "lemon-sized" flap of scalp torn off.
"You could see his skull," Ortega said.
Both parents were also bitten by the dog while trying to pull their son away. However, the family is now doing fine.
Officers from El Mirage, Maricopa County Animal Care and Control and other nearby communities were still searching for the dog until Tuesday morning.
An animal control officer spotted the dog in the Agua Fria river bed, according to police. The mother of the injured boy then identified the dog.
El Mirage police say the dog may have been shot.
