A baby boy who was attacked at home by his parents’ Staffordshire bull terrier died in hospital of “catastrophic injuries”, an inquest has heard. 

Reuben McNulty was just five weeks old when he died at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge on December 13 last year.

He was attacked at his home in Yaxley, Cambridgeshire, in the early hours of November 18 and admitted to hospital the same day.

David Heming, Cambridgeshire’s senior coroner, said Reuben “suffered catastrophic injuries … as a result of being attacked by his parents’ Staffordshire bull terrier at their home address”.

He said Reuben sustained a traumatic brain injury, with complications of renal failure and gastrointestinal failure. “All these injuries are consistent with a dog attack,” he said.

He added: “The events surrounding the tragic death of Reuben are clearly devastating for his parents and I would like to express my condolences and extend my sympathies towards them.”

He opened the hearing in Huntingdon on Monday and adjourned it for a full inquest on May 16 this year.

His parents, Daniel McNulty and Amy Litchfield, had been arrested on suspicion of child neglect but have since been released pending further inquiries.

Following the incident, a man believed to be the boy’s grandfather, said: “They’re in bits, they’re devastated.”

Both dogs, named Fizzy and Dotty, have since been “destroyed”, Cambridgeshire Police said.