A DISABLED man attempted to prise open a Staffordshire bull terrier's jaws after the dog attacked his bull mastiff – and was then beaten by its owner.

Gregory Archdale, who suffers from ankylosing spondylitis - a chronic condition affecting the spine - was walking his two dogs on the lead in Boscombe Chine Gardens at around 9.30pm on December 18 last year when mastiff Spartacus was viciously bitten by the staffie.

As Mr Archdale attempted to free his pet, the terrier's owner, 31-year-old Sebastian Bakula, ran over and kicked the victim in the groin before pushing him away from the two dogs.

Prosecuting the case at Bournemouth Crown Court, Stuart Ellacott said the victim had tried to force the terrier's jaw open after it bit down on Spartacus's head.

"[Mr Archdale] could hear his dog screaming in pain," Mr Ellacott said.

"He tried to force its jaws apart. He could see blood running down his dog's face.

"Mr Bakula approached and [Mr Archdale] assumed he was going to help him to get the dog off of [Spartacus].

"Instead, he felt a kick close to his groin and was pushed away from the two dogs."

The victim managed to free himself and attempted to return to his dog.

However, he was grabbed around the neck by Bakula, 31, and dragged away.

The defendant punched Mr Archdale in the face, pushed him to the floor and sat astride him, pinning his arms to the ground with his knees.

He then repeatedly punched the victim and kneed him in the face.

Three "hero" members of the public then restrained Bakula, allowing Mr Archdale to separate Ice and Spartacus.

He was bitten on the thumb by the terrier after forcing its jaws open.

When he was arrested, Bakula spat at a police officer and said: "Take these cuffs off and I'll smash your ******* face against the wall."

In a victim impact statement, Mr Archdale called the three members of the public "true heroes".

"Months after the attack, the assault is continuing to harm me and my family," he said.

On April 13 of this year, Bakula burgled a house in Constitution Hill.

A woman returning to the property with her grandchildren heard someone upstairs in the house, and shouted a warning.

Bakula, who fled from a first-floor window across a flat roof, was seen by the children.

Mr Ellacott said the youngsters "no longer feel safe" in their home.

Mitigating, Brian Sharman said the defendant, who has three convictions for seven offences, began committing crimes when he turned to drink following the death of his father in Poland.

Bakula, of no fixed abode, admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm, being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control, possession of cannabis, common assault and burglary.

Recorder Gordon Bebb QC sentenced the defendant to 20 months in prison for the "nasty and violent" offences.

Bakula has also been barred from owning a dog for five years.

The dog is now in the care of the RSPCA.