Two children were taken to hospital after a dog bit them on their legs at the weekend.

A community event was about to begin about 1.30pm at the Cannons Creek School Hall in Porirua when the dog appeared and bit an 8-year-old girl and a 9-year-old boy.

The girl was saved by her thick pants and did not suffer serious injury, but the boy had dark bruises in two spots where the dog bit him, said New Zealand Myanmar Ethnics Council chairwoman Christalin Thangpawl.

She said the gathering was for a fundraising and awareness event focusing on the civil war in Myanmar, and for members of the community to support one another.

The girl was playing outside when the dog ran up and bit her. It then made its way into the hall, where it attacked the boy before running away.

Thangpawl told the parents to take the children to hospital, and she called the council to report the incident. They put her in touch with animal control.

She said the black and white dog was "quite big and tall" and "really, really scary".

She was saddened that such an incident had happened in what was already a rough time for the group.

"We was gathering to support one another when we were in hard times.

"We thought we was in a safe place . . . the kids, now they get frightened, which is not very good to experience."

The incident could have been much worse if the adults weren't present, she said.

The children were taken to Kenepuru Hospital.