Two dogs that attacked a woman in Lyons on Wednesday morning were seen loose at the suburb's early childhood school only minutes earlier.
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A Canberra woman was hospitalised after the dogs attacked her, injuring her arms and legs.
Tom McGill, who works in before- and after-school care at Lyons Early Childhood School, said children were about 10 minutes from arriving when he found the dogs wandering unsupervised on its grounds.
After shooing them away, he heard screams and rushed over to see the dogs attacking the 32-year-old woman.
"They were really, really going at her, they mauled her pretty badly," he said.
"They were still going at her when we got there."
He and other staff fought them off the woman, before police and rangers arrived and caught the dogs.
"For me, I was more angry than scared, that someone let their dogs loose in the neighbourhood," he said.
Children were about to arrive for before-school care when the dogs attacked, and had they set upon the woman 15 minutes earlier, no-one would have heard her scream, Mr McGill said.
A Transport Canberra and City Services spokesperson confirmed a woman and her dog - which she had been walking on a leash - had been set upon by two roaming Rottweilers in the southside suburb about 7.15am.
She was seen by paramedics and then taken to The Canberra Hospital at 7.39am.
Mr McGill said the woman had deep bite marks.
The incident is the latest in a string of dog attacks across the territory. These include the death of Watson woman, Tania Klemke, killed by her dog on October 25.
The Transport Canberra and City Services spokesperson confirmed Domestic Animal Services attended the incident, seized the dogs, and identified their owner.
The spokesperson said several witnesses had been identified and statements had been taken by DAS.
"As the matter is currently under investigation, further comment cannot be made at this time," the spokesperson said.
"DAS would like to remind people that it is their responsibility to ensure their animals are contained in their yard appropriately and that they are managed responsibly."
An ACT Policing spokesperson said officers had been called to the attack and were assisting Domestic Animal Services in the investigation.
In the wake of the attack, City Services Minister Meegan Fitzharris confirmed she had asked the directorate to establish a plan to improve dog management in the ACT.
Ms Fitzharris said the request would cover both regulatory and operational perspectives, as well as community concerns, to ensure people are aware of their responsibilities as dog owners.
"This work is underway and the government expects legislation on dangerous dogs to be debated in November, followed by consultation with the community on further measures to reduce incidents involving dangerous dogs and better manage owners with dogs that have a aggressive history," Ms Fitzharris said.
The government has previously said it would consider increasing the cost of dangerous dog licences to cover the cost of increased enforcement, as part of an opposition bill to tighten up domestic animal laws.
The government had already doubled the number of rangers after last month's fatal attack.
The potential amendments include raising the fines for failing to comply with dangerous dog laws and punishing people for failing to report their own dog for an attack.
The TCCS spokesperson said dog attacks are the highest priorities for response by DAS Rangers and urged the community to call triple zero if an attack was in progress.
Dog attacks can be reported to Domestic Animal Services via Access Canberra's 24 hour hotline on 132 281.
