A man is pursued by a rabid dog after it attacked a child in the street.

Video footage shows the 11-year-old girl on the floor as she was being bitten. The Home Secretary Suella Braverman has described the attack as “appalling” and has said she has asked for urgent advice on outlawing American XL bully dogs. There is speculation the animal in the video is an XL bully. The footage shows the girl escaping after people intervened.

She ran screaming into a shop. The dog then followed the man in a white T-shirt into a petrol station forecourt and pulled him down. Passers-by, including one who swung a large shovel at the dog, tried to protect the victim. Two men and the girl were taken to hospital. Witness Nasir Uddin said: “A girl was bitten by a brown dog and [it] locked on. By the time I went up to the dog with a bar I had in the car it released the girl. It then went after a boy. My little girl and wife were screaming.” He said the dog was not on a lead.”

The attack happened in Bordesley Green, Birmingham. West Midlands police said: “A girl ran past the dog as it was being walked by its owner, when she was bitten. Two men intervened but were bitten and left with injuries to their shoulders and arms. The dog was… taken into secure kennels while [our] investigation continues.” Police have talked to the dog’s owner.

The Home Secretary said: “The American XL bully is a serious and deadly threat to our communities, especially children. We can’t continue like this. I have asked for urgent advice on banning them.” It is said the advice was asked for before the attack. Putting dogs on the banned list is the responsibility of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.