A DOG owner has spoken of her heartbreak after her beloved Jack Russell was brutally mauled to death in front of her eyes.

Karen Daniels was walking 12-year-old Nobby in Queensway, Southend, when a Staffordshire bull terrier and its owner approached them. The larger dog launched a frenzied attack, using his mouth to grab Nobby by the neck.

Ms Daniels said: “It was horrific, I am still in a daze. I have no kids so he was like my baby, I had him since he was a puppy. If he had been put down, it would have been different but to be killed like this is awful - he must have been so scared.

“I was walking on the road and there was a man approaching me with his dog who was in front of him.

“He started sniffing my dog and then grabbed him by the neck. I was screaming to get him off but he had pinned Nobby to the floor.

“The Staffie wasn’t on a lead and the owner was kicking him to get him off. He picked his dog up by the collar and he still had Nobby in his mouth.

“When the man picked his dog up, Nobby was still in his mouth and I was shouting to open his jaw. When he dropped to the ground I think he was already dead.”

Ms Daniels said the owner ran off with his dog after the attack, which took place on Wednesday at 6.15pm.

A kind-hearted stranger rushed Nobby and Ms Daniels to the vets, but it was too late.

She added: “It all happened so quickly, it must have been about 45 seconds. I was screaming so much that when I looked up there were people looking out of their windows.

“The man ran off but Nobby was dead by then.

“I just want to warn people because it could happen again, and next time it could be a child.

“It is not the dogs fault, I had a Staffie for 15 years and they are not all bad. The man needs to be caught, he should have had his dog under control.

“It was all pretty nasty, there was blood everywhere. Every time I close my eyes I just relive it.”

A spokesman for Essex Police said: “We are appealing for any witnesses who saw the incident to contact us. The owner of the Staffie dog is described as white, tall and slim with a gaunt face. He had fair greying hair.”

Anyone with information can contact Southend police on 101.