A 79-year-old man was attacked and bitten by an “out of control” dog while out jogging.

Castle Point Jogger, Roy Jones, 79, was attacked by the dog while running down Western Road in Daws Heath on the evening of Tuesday, September 20.

He said: “A dog that looked like a Staffordshire terrier jumped up and bit my arm.

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“I’m a veteran runner and was jogging down my usual route when I saw this dog running about on a long leash.

“I thought it would be fine, but the dog run up to me, he was quite big, jumped up close to my face and then jumped again and but my arm,” the 6-foot-tall runner from Hadleigh said.

“In my opinion, the chap was not entirely in control of the dog,” he said.

“There are a lot of children that use that road to get to and from school, so I thought it was very dangerous for the dog to be on a long lead.

The guy who was walking the dog did apologise to me, but he did not hang around and left quite quickly.”

Mr Jones was left with minor injuries to his arm but did not require hospital treatment.

“Fortunately, I have had a recent tetanus jab, so I am quite safe, but it was a frightening experience,” he said.

Dog bites can become infected or transmit illnesses such as rabies and a tetanus shot may be required in the aftermath of an attack if you have not had one in the last 10 years.    

“I just wanted to raise some awareness of what happened to me because it could have been much worse if it had been a child, or even someone my age who is less active,” Mr Jones, who last week completed the Southend 10-kilometre run said.

Mr Jones says he flagged down a passing police officer after the attack and was advised to report the attack to Essex Police via the 101-call centre.

Essex Police has been contacted for comment.