Carefree woman who was bitten to death by a dog was planning to get married

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A woman who was bitten to death by her dog had planned to get married, her devastated partner revealed.

Emergency services were called to her property in Coventry on Monday afternoon after receiving calls that the victim, in his 30s, had been attacked.

Her partner Noel Spring, 50, appointed her MailOnline as Kelly Reilly and said that her dog had not previously shown any signs of aggression and had been living with her for “a few months”.

The dog, believed to be a bullmastiff, was seized by West Midlands Police, who said they did not believe the pet was a banned breed.

A GoFundMe campaign has now been launched to raise money for funeral costs. Her sister wrote that she had a “big heart” that her family will “sorely miss.”

Speaking from his home, where he is now caring for two kittens Ms Reilly recently rescued, Mr Spring said: “She was adorable. She was happy and smiling. She would do anything for anyone, she was always helping people.”

He added that she had recently been hospitalized twice for epileptic seizures and was currently unemployed due to her poor health.

“We were planning to get married. She always walked around with a nice smile on her face, she was carefree,” he said.

The couple had been together for about a year. Ms Reilly had stayed at his house the night before the attack. He told MailOnline she had only come home briefly to clean and he found her unconscious a short time later.

A neighbor who also called the emergency services described the dog as “completely harmless.”

Chief Inspector David Amos, from the local police district, said: “We understand this is a distressing and tragic incident and we would like to thank the local community for their support, as well as our emergency service colleagues who dealt with this incident.

“Our thoughts are with the family and loved ones of the sadly deceased woman and we will inform the coroner of her death.

“Although the breed of the dog is not yet confirmed, at this stage we do not believe it is a prohibited breed. However, a full assessment is required before we can confirm this.

Six months ago, The Independent revealed that the number of fatal dog attacks has risen to a record high in the last two years, with 16 deaths recorded in 2023 and six in 2022.

Just a few weeks earlier, a seven-month-old baby in Coventry had been bitten to death by the family dog ​​after it bit her on the head.

Elle Doherty was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, while the dog, a Belgian Shepherd, was confined and killed.