ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. - A man was in the hospital being treated for dog bites after he allegedly broke into a police substation early Saturday morning.

A deputy went to the substation for a break when he noticed that the door was kicked in and there was shattered glass near the entrance, a patrol sergeant told 7NEWS.

This was shortly after 12:40 a.m. at the substation on East Iliff Avenue near the High Line Canal.

The deputy noticed a man inside carrying a police shield and did not know if he was armed.

At one point, the phone inside rang and he answered by saying, "Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office."

Deputies called out a police dog and deployed a less-lethal response.

Eventually the man walked out the front door of the substation. But he was refusing police commands to keep his hands in the air, said the patrol sergeant.

The dog was released when deputies said the man lunged towards them. He was bitten on the arm and taken to the hospital.

The man was not armed but police said he tried to open the gun safe and it was locked.

The patrol sergeant tells 7NEWS the man was over the legal DUI limit.

Philip Thomas Brown, 41, was arrested.

"The suspect stated he broke into the substation because he is ill from the flu and is homeless," said Sheriff Grayson Robinson in a news release.

Brown will be charged with 2nd-degree burglary, criminal mischief and obstruction, according to Robinson.