A woman has recounted the sickening moment her ex's dog attacked her, permanently ripping her ear off.
Erin Doherty posted a videos to her TikTok page, @erdohert, as she shared a montage of photos and clips recounting the horrifying ordeal.
Doherty, thought to be based in New York, started off with a snap of herself and a German Shepherd, believed to be the culprit.
"A few months ago my ex's dog bit my ear off," the on-screen text says, as the next photo shows her in the hospital.
As the video played, charting her recovery, the captions said: "He found it on the ground and brought it to the hospital on ice to get sewn back on."
She revealed: "I missed my twin sisters' bachelorette party that I spent a year planning.
"My ear turned black and rotted but I went to the wedding with a black ear and got lit anyway."
But the severed body part didn't take, as she revealed: "They took my rotting ear off."
Doherty shared more recovery shots, including a close-up of her ear, herself in the hospital, and finally with a bandage around her head.
"Started prosthetic appointments," she said, picking up fake ears and noses.
And showing she was able to find humor in the situation, she continued: "Was Van Gogh for Halloween."
The clip ends with her holding a prosthetic up to her severed ear, as she says: "Finally got this bad boy pierced and to take home. New year new ear."
The video, posted on Sunday, racked up nearly 2 million views, and can be seen here, as people flooded the comments section with questions.
In response, Doherty, whose TikTok page says she's an architect, posted a part 2, sharing the background to the situation.
She also confirmed her hearing was unaffected, and her insurance covered her medical bills.
Doherty described the moment of the attack, saying: "I was sitting on the bed with the dog at the time, my ex's dog, and he went to the bathroom.
"And it was the first time I was ever alone with the dog, and he was aggressive towards me before that, but my ex was always around.
"So I was alone with the dog for the first time, and he got spooked, or scared or something, and he just started growling.
"And I was like 'what's wrong buddy' like going to pet him, because I have a golden retriever so I'm used to nice dogs, and he basically whipped around and started biting me.
"He attacked my hand pretty good, I had stitches and have scars and stuff from that, instinctively right after I went like this, covering my head, so he bit my ear off, luckily it wasn't my neck or anything.
"I had a big hole in my head, it was really gross."
She claimed the incident was the first time she met her ex's mom, while "screaming and covered in blood."
@erdohert Reply to @tacotruckk
♬ original sound - Erin Doherty
She continued: "My ex was a cop so it was like instinctive for him to find the evidence, I don't really know how that works, but he ended up finding the ear on the ground and brought it to the hospital and it was detached for like six hours which is why it failed. "
And she confirmed the dog wasn't put down saying: "The dog is still alive. My ex has the dog. Every time I would go to his house afterwards he would keep the dog upstairs.
"And I would not have anything to do with it because I didn't want to be around the dog, I was very respectful around that, but it was hard to deal with obviously.
"The dog is still around, he wasn't put down. I did not sue him."
She explained she decided to get a prosthetic, rather than using cartilage from her rib to rebuild her ear, as it would have necessitated a lot of surgeries with side effects.
"Eventually I could get a magnetic ear and I could use it like a fridge magnet, which I thought was kind of cool. I'd be like a walking fridge magnet," Doherty added.
Her harrowing tale amassed numerous comments, as Lydia Love asked: "How is he going to casually explain to everyone he ever dates again that his dog BIT HIS EXES EAR OFF."
Arlene wrote: "I'm in awe at what can be done with prosthetics these days."
"I can't believe he wasn't forced to put down the dog," @Tullisgirls wrote.
Kelly Lavery Kirby admitted: "At no point in this story did I know what was going to happen next."
While Wendy praised: "Definitely a glass half full kinda gal!"
And Kristine Schou added: "I love that you pierced it and made the best of the situation!"
While it's not specified exactly where this took place, New York's Administrative Code defines a dangerous dog as: "When unprovoked, approaches, or menaces any person in a dangerous or terrorizing manner, or in an apparent attitude of attack, upon the streets, sidewalks, or any public grounds or places....
"Any dog which bites, inflicts injury, assaults or otherwise attacks a human being or domestic animal without provocation on public or private property."
Various punishments range from the dog being confiscated or put down, to owners being fined or imprisoned.
Newsweek reached out to Doherty for comment.
