AURORA, COLO. ? A 10-year-old boy was in “very critical” condition Thursday after three pit bulls attacked him in his back yard, police said.

The boy, whose name was not released, was bitten on his head, face, throat, arms and legs, police spokesman Anthony Guzman said in a written statement. He was identified by Denver television stations as Gregg Jones.

The attack occurred Wednesday when the boy returned home from school in this east Denver suburb, found the front door locked and then went into the back yard, Guzman said.

Neighbors heard the boy scream and ran to the yard, where they found him motionless with one of the dogs biting him. Armed with a bat, they drove the dogs away from the child, Guzman said.

“It was horrific. I’ve never seen anything like that in my life,” neighbor Mike Brushell told KMGH-TV in Denver.

A police officer shot and wounded one of the dogs, and it was later euthanized at a veterinary clinic. The other dogs were impounded at an animal shelter.

It was not immediately clear who owned the dogs.

The attack came two days after the City Council banned new pit bulls and other “fighting dogs.” It also requires the owners of such dogs already living in the city to pay a $200 annual license fee, provide proof the dogs are spayed or neutered, post warning signs on their front doors and keep the dogs muzzled in public.

A number of other Colorado cities have banned or restricted the dogs, including Denver, suburban Commerce City and the south Denver city of Castle Rock.