A pit bull whose registered owner is tennis star Serena Williams -- although Williams denied ownership -- nipped a security guards buttocks Friday night outside her home, according to a Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., police incident report.

The guard was not injured because a wallet in his pocket protected him from the bite, according to the report.

The incident took place when the 5-year-old tan pit bull, Bambi, and a white Maltese were roaming around a guardhouse near Williams' home, the report said.

The guard traced the dogs back to Williams' home using a phone number listed on the Maltese dog's tag. Williams later told police the dogs got loose after she let them out and that she owned the Maltese, but not the pit bull, the report said.

Williams told police she was watching the dog for a friend, the report said.

The pit bull is registered to Williams, Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control assistant director Dennis Yeskey told The Palm Beach Post.

Animal control did not have records of Williams owning a Maltese.

Williams' website shows two photographs of a tan pit bull named Bambi. A spokeswoman for Williams declined to comment.

(Xinhua News Agency via Agencies December 7, 2006)