A pensioner's shih tzu almost died when it was savaged by an “an XL Bully” – a pitbull variety described as “the most muscular dog”.
Eunice Gow, 83, who was walking her beloved pet Bobby on Saturday afternoon, was terrified by the attack.
The vet who treated Bobby said he’d been lucky to survive a “kill attack”.
Members of the public tried to break Bobby free from the clutches of the other dog during the attack on Caird Avenue, Dundee.
Sharon and Dannii Finlayson, relatives of Eunice, say that if she hadn’t been on the main road the situation could have been worse.
They thanked the public who intervened during the “shocking” incident.
“I dread to think what could have happened if this was on a quieter street,” Sharon said.
“Eunice is 83 herself and could have been attacked. The guy who had the dog had no control over it.
“It was an XL Bully dog, the ones with the big muscles. The guy had the dog on a harness lead, but it just dragged him down towards Bobby.
“Members of the public intervened and we can’t thank them enough for their help.”
Bobby, eight, was rushed to Parkside Vets on King’s Cross Road where it was deemed he was “lucky to be alive” following the incident.
Sharon added: “Bobby was taken to the vets by strangers who helped my gran carry the dog.
“The vets have said he is lucky to be alive and it was described as a ‘kill attack’.”
The man who was in possession of the other dog left the scene as members of the public videoed a section of the incident.
Footage shows the man losing control of the dog again as the animal ran to the bottom of Caird Avenue towards Moncur Crescent.
“Witnesses have been saying the harness for the XL Bully was far too big.
“The guy in possession of the dog was more concerned about getting the dog away from the scene,” Sharon explained.
“People who have these big dogs need to be better trained in controlling them. I honestly fear this could easily happen again.
“We contacted the police and they’ve advised because it was a dog-on-dog attack they couldn’t do anything and we were informed to contact the dog warden on Monday.”
Shortly after the incident, the family released some of the footage online in their bid to identify the other animal and its owner on social media.
Sharon added: “Bobby is now resting at our house, we have an enclosed garden to make him feel safe.
“My gran is now terrified to take him on walks again due to this, and other elderly residents are in the same boat with their own dogs.
“Bobby was in the vets for more than three hours and they’ve patched him up, but his paw is mangled and it’s restricting him from walking. People have been commenting on the video saying it’s shocking what’s happened.”
Police Scotland confirmed they had been contacted in connection with the incident.
A spokeswoman said: “We were made aware of a dog-on-dog attack on Caird Avenue, Dundee, around 3.50pm on Saturday. Advice was given to contact the local dog warden.”
