The scars on his upper thigh are beginning to heal but 12-year-old Ali Hassan says an off-duty police dog attack has left him hesitant to return outside.

On Wednesday evening, Ali was playing outside of his family’s home on a cul-de-sac in Aspen Hills alongside his sister and brother when the trio heard a loud banging sound. Ali turned to see a large beige coloured dog running towards him.

“My first instinct is (to run) since I’m afraid of dogs, especially big ones like him,” recalls Ali. “I was closest to the house so I just started running into my garage.”

“When I looked behind me while I’m running, I realize that he’s running for me. I just started sprinting for my life."

Ali ran through the attached garage and into the kitchen, his shouts drawing the attention of his mother, grandmother and grandfather.

“Once I reached close to the patio door, the dog just jumped on me and just holds on to my leg making it so I cannot walk at all,” said Ali. “I tried to drag myself away from him and hit him in the face so he would stop biting,”

Ali said he remain trapped in the dog’s jaws for 30 to 40 seconds while his grandparents and mother attempted to halt the attack.

Mustafa Hassan, Ali’s father, was upstairs at the time and the clamour below sent him rushing to the kitchen. Mustafa punched the dog in its side several times and the dog released its hold on the boy.

The dog’s handler, a member of the Calgary Police Service, entered the home and removed his dog. Minutes later, the CPS member returned without his dog and administered first aid.

“(The bite marks) were very deep. My dad said they were about two inches deep,” said Ali. “I’m in a lot of pain.”

“He’s trained to bite right here (pointing at the back of his thigh) where the most tissue is so it doesn’t injure the people a lot but it makes them certainly not able to run anymore.”

A paramedic crew arrived and transported Ali to hospital.

“I was just worried for my family members, they just seemed so scared,” recalls Ali. “When I was going in the ambulance, everyone’s faces were terrified.”

Ali says his time in hospital was his first, assuming you don’t count his visits related to asthma or vomiting.

“They cleaned out the wounds because they’re very deep and a dog’s mouth is dirty sometimes,” said Ali of his hospital experience that left him with stitches in his legs and crutches to walk.

Mustafa says having a police officer as a neighbour was comforting but the family had no idea a police dog lived nearby.

“The incident broke the safety of the neighbourhood and that is what we don’t like,” said Mustafa. “I think we should talk about that in the future.”

The Calgary Police Service has identified the offending dog as Marco, a Belgian Malinois, who has been a member of the force for roughly a year.

Marco has been removed from his home and placed in quarantine while the Calgary Police Service conducts an internal investigation into the incident.

“I know they removed him to high security kennels on the other side of the city so I know I’m safe,” said Ali. “At night, sometimes I remember how it’s such a terrifying event.”

CPS Chief Constable Roger Chaffin says it’s unlikely the dog will be put down and transferring Marco to another agency is a possibility.