A belligerent offender attacked a police dog during his arrest. He was bitten twice, tasered and pepper sprayed - then later complained police used excessive force. (FILE SHOT)

A belligerent offender who attacked a police dog during his arrest was peppered sprayed, Tasered and bitten before he was subdued. Then the police dog bit him again.

One of the arresting officers described the man as the most determined person he had ever seen with a police dog.

"He was picking up the dog, throwing him down on the ground and really giving a good hiding."

The Christchurch man complained to the Independent Police Conduct Authority saying police used excessive force, but, in a report released on Thursday, the authority found police actions were justified.

Police went to a block of flats in Hei Hei, Christchurch just after 7.45pm on March 6 last year. They arrested a man who punched another man in the head and repeatedly punched his partner while she was on the ground. During the arrest the attending officers used pepper spray, a police dog and a Taser.

At the time the man was on bail for assault and had a history of using weapons. Three police officers attended. The man had locked himself inside a flat with his partner he previously attacked. After hearing a loud bang from inside the flat, police decided to force their way in as they had concerns for his partner's safety.

After kicking the door down an officer activated his Taser and the Taser cam. He warned the man he was armed and to come out of the address. After repeatedly calling out to the man and searching the flat the man emerged with a cigarette in one hand. He would not let the officers handcuff both hands until he had finished it. The officers tried to handcuff the man and he resisted.

The man began to swing his upper body towards the officer trying to handcuff him. The officer pepper sprayed the man and let go of the handcuffs, which were on one of the man's arms. The pepper spray failed to subdue the man, who attacked the police dog, which bit him on the leg. An officer put the man in a headlock to stop him attacking the dog.

"Because I had him in a headlock he was able to pick me up so both my feet were up off the ground," he said.

Another officer activated his Taser and warned the man, who continued to attack the dog. The Taser hit the man in the back and he fell to the ground. The police dog bit the man a second time without being commanded to do so.

The police investigation concluded the first bite was necessary, reasonable and proportionate to the situation and therefore not excessive. It determined the second bite did not comply with best practice, but found it was not sufficient evidence to lay charges because the officer did not intentionally allow the dog to bite the man.

Police said in a statement on Thursday they recognised the learnings from the incident and would train the police dog team to avoid it happening again.