Owners of a Yorkshire terrier savagely mauled by a pitbull-type dog are appealing for the public’s assistance in locating those responsible.

The seven-year-old dog suffered a broken shoulder, punctured lung, cracked ribs and multiple bites in the attack in Hamilton Parish on Saturday evening.

By the time animal wardens attended the property the larger dog was gone, and the family were told someone had seen it being picked up and driven off on a bike.

“This dog is very dangerous — it needs to be dealt with,” the owner, who asked not to be named, told The Royal Gazette.

“All the expense is on me at the moment. It’s not fair. You’ve got these cowards — things happen and at least come and say sorry. Take the responsibility and pay for the vet.”

“I do not want this to happen to someone else, to a person or another dog,” she said, adding that her dog had been left fighting for his life.

Her daughter said: “If it wasn’t my dog, it could’ve been a toddler walking down the tracks.”

The attack happened between 5.30pm and 6pm.

The owner’s husband was taking the dog for a walk when the bigger dog spotted them through a hedge.

“The dog was outside tied up, which my husband didn’t see. It was out the back, but the dog saw him.

He broke loose and went after my dog and snatched him. He bit him up and my husband tried to fight him off.”

When the larger dog was finally pulled away, it had dragged the Yorkshire terrier back through the hedge.

“They rushed him to Endsmeet. Now he has a punctured lung, his ribs are broken, he’s got multiple bites.”

He also had a fractured shoulder and “they have to send an X-ray to Boston to see what they can do”, she said.

She was able to see him on Saturday “after they calmed him down”, but said: “I never knew he could howl so loud; because he is so small he just barks. I was shocked.”

Her daughter added: “I couldn’t breathe in the room. I had to walk out and get some water, sit down outside and try and catch myself.”

The owner reported the incident to the animal wardens, but she said the dog was gone by the time they came to the property, leading the family to suspect it is illegal.

She said the person who was looking after the pitbull that day has insisted that he did not know whom it belonged to.

“The only thing we know is that people saw someone come on a bike and put the dog on the bike and take off,” she added.

“I just want to know, did anybody see anything, or see someone with a dog on the bike speeding? One person did, but he said he didn’t catch the number, going towards Francis Patton Primary School.

“Or even neighbours might know of a big reddish, brown dog in the Hamilton Parish area.”

She added that she also wanted to make people aware of “what’s going on with these pitbulls still and that they are very dangerous”.

“I’m not saying all of them because there are some nice ones. The problem is this dog. It’s very dangerous and the owners need to take responsibility for it.”

She added that anyone with information about the incident could call 239-2327.