A SNARLING rottweiler kept an ambulance crew from helping a woman as she lay crying for help in her home. It took police, carpenters and ambulance teams 20 minutes to pass the dog which was growling behind the front door of a flat in Gorse Avenue, Chatham.

But neighbours said that Honey, a one-year-old puppy, was "as timid as a lamb" and even played with children in the road

Lavinia Hines, 90, dialled 999 when she heard her diabetic and epileptic neighbour, Karen Kitney, crying out.

Ms Kitney's door was locked and Mrs Hines was worried that the woman, in her 30s, was having a fit. Ambulance crews were forced to call police and carpenters for help.

Aaron Dando, 21, an mhs homes carpenter, supplied a special plastic card to enter the property, but said he and his colleagues were told to stand back.

Mr Dando said: "The police officer put his head around the door, but jumped back immediately when the dog went for him."

He said police barred Ms Kitney's family from entering her home, saying the dog was dangerous, but after 20 minutes, the animal was brought under control.

The unconscious woman was taken to Medway Hospital's intensive care unit with hypothermia. Her condition was latersaid to be critical - although medical teams said the delay caused by her pet had not placed her in greater danger.

Neighbour Sonia Tonkin, 21, said that Honey was as "soft as a cat", but was just protective. She said: "She wouldn't hurt anyone. My 11-month-old baby Shannon plays with her. Honey runs out in the garden when Karen puts her washing out. Our dogs have played together."

She said Honey was sometimes boisterous, because she was still "just a pup".

A Kent Ambulance NHS Trust spokesman said: "Aggressive dogs are one of the hazards of our job. Some of our crew members in the past have been bitten three times.

"This was a difficult because the woman was extremely poorly. Her condition was life-threatening. Ironically, the dog was merely doing its job by keeping strangers out of the house.

"When we are sent to homes we ask callers to shut their animals away. Even friendly dogs can turn nasty because their instinct is to protect their owner.''

A spokesman for Kent police said officers had no record of the incident.