Island County Animal Control officer is asking for the public’s help in locating two pit bull mixes that seriously injured another dog on North Whidbey.

“It’s a matter of public safety,” Carol Barnes said. “We have two dogs that aggressively attacked another dog on private property.”

North Whidbey resident Jennifer Olson said her English mastiff, Emma, is recovering, but she’s still worried that that the two pit bulls may be dangerous to other animals or a child.

“They were really trying to take her down,” she said. “I think that kind of behavior could be directed at anything.”

The attack happened on Thursday, Oct. 9. Olson explained that Emma jumped off the deck and ran into the woods next to their house. Olson said she didn’t even realize anything was happening until she heard some squealing noises and saw her dog’s legs in the air.

The two dogs, which appeared to be pit bull mixes, had Emma pinned to the ground and were tearing at her stomach.

Her other dog, a mutt named Teddy, ran to help, allowing Emma to get up and run back toward the house.

Olson said the two dogs started coming in her direction, growling with their teeth bared. She managed to throw a board at them and they ran off.

Olson said her veterinarian told her that the dogs likely would have killed Emma if Teddy hadn’t intervened and she hadn’t been home.

Emma suffered multiple bites on her underside, requiring drains and stitches. One penetrated so deeply that it nearly entered her chest cavity.

Olson said the incident wasn’t a typical “dog fight,” but something more worrisome. The two pit bulls didn’t make a sound, but silently attacked Emma on her own property.

Emma is just 11 months old and a typical mastiff — giant and gentle.

“She is the sweetest, most mellow dog on the planet,” Olson said.

Emma and Teddy, a rescue dog, are “joined at the hip,” she said.

Olson and her family live in an isolated area near Taylor and Fakkema roads. She said she saw one of the pit bulls on her property prior to the attack, so she thinks it’s likely they live nearby; they ran off in the direction of Silver Lake Road.

The dogs were similar in appearance to pit bulls, but seemed smaller and had distinctive coloring, she said. One is light brown and white while the other was black and white.

“They had really pretty markings,” she said, describing it as akin to a “painted horse.”

Barnes said anyone with information about the dogs should call ICOM dispatch center at 360-679-9567.