A woman was photographed dragging away her blood spattered dog moments after it savagely 'decapitated' a tiny family pet. The horrific attack was witnessed by young children.
The woman - whose arms were also smeared with blood - yanked her dog away and fled down a street in Warrington, Cheshire. It's alleged that she protested, "It's not his fault - he's only a baby."
The dog has since been seized by police and is being examined to identify the breed, although witnesses said it looked like a Staffordshire or Pit Bull Terrier.
Elvis, a seven-year-old Pomeranian, was playing in a garden when he yapped at the dog walking past.
The animal burst through the gate, still on its lead, snatching Elvis in its jaws and ripping his head off.
Witnesses say the dog then spat out Elvis's head after being pulled away by its owner.
Chief Inspector Darren Hebden of Cheshire Police said: "This was a horrendous attack and was clearly very distressing for the owners to witness."
Mum-of-three Gemma Antell, aged 30, owned Elvis. She described the tiny lap dog as 'friendly, attention seeking and harmless'.
He was being looked after by mother-in-law Margaret Antell on Saturday while Mrs Antell held a party for her son Lincoln's sixth birthday.
Mrs Antell said: "It was like something out of a horror film, like it's not actually happened.
My children are distraught. It is the first thing they have had to lose and it's completely changed the way they see dogs as they are now terrified, which is very sad.
"Elvis would never hurt anyone. The kids have grown up around him and he hardly had any teeth because with his breed, they fall out.
"At least it wasn't a child, but he was our loved family pet."
The photograph of the bloodied dog and its owner struggling to control the dog was taken by the father of a four-year-old, who witnessed the attack, and were posted on Twitter and Facebook by Mrs Antell, desperate to warn the local community about the dog.
Chief Inspector Hebden said: "I am aware of pictures that have been circulated on social media, which will undoubtedly cause concern for the community but can I reassure people that we have now seized the offending dog so there is no risk to the general public.
"We will be speaking to the owners in due course and will do all we can to deal with the incident appropriately within the guidelines of the law."