A dog owner has described the moment his beloved bichon frisé dog was mauled to death by a raging XL Bully which broke into his back garden.
Corey Charles, 43, had let his ten-year-old pet, Toby, into the garden to roam but within minutes it was set upon.
The council worker watched in horror as his neighbour's eight-month-old animal smashed its way through his fence and latched onto Toby's neck before throwing him around 'like a rag doll' and then biting Mr Charles.
Despite rushing the family pet to a nearby vet, he was put to sleep due to his injuries 24 hours later and the vicious dog is still living next door to the terrified family following the attack on August 18 in Edmonton, North London.
Mr Charles' neighbours have promised to remove the dog after he informed the police about the incident but are yet to do so, leaving his family prisoners in their own home.
Corey Charles, 43, had let his ten-year-old pet, Toby, into the garden to roam but within minutes it was set upon
Mr Charles' neighbours have promised to remove the dog after he informed the police about the incident.
Pictured: The damage left at the eight-month-old XL bully puppy burst through the fence
Mr Charles, a council worker, added his shocked neighbours were not to blame, saying he was wary of their dog but had not previously had any problems with it
Speaking to MailOnline, he said: 'I put Toby in the garden and within minutes heard lots of barking, I looked outside to see the neighbour's dog on top of him, biting his neck, throwing him around like a rag doll.
'I was screaming, I ran out and tried to grab the dog by the collar and it turned on me and bit me, it didn't manage to clamp my arm but left me with three puncture wounds which I had to have jabs for at the hospital.
'My neighbours jumped the fence and managed to get their dog off of Toby before dragging it back to their property, it was awful, luckily my two young daughters were away at the time.'
Mr Charles, a council worker, added his shocked neighbours were not to blame, saying he was wary of their dog but had not previously had any problems with it.
Police were called and told him he would be able to press charges for criminal damage and they planned to forcibly remove the dog from the premises which he did not want to do as they had told him they planned to get rid of the animal themselves.
He added: 'I know my neighbours and have had a good relationship with them, they didn't let their dog run wild, it was in the garden, the dog was eight months old, a puppy, but still managed to break through and do this damage to my dog.
'It is difficult to live next door to them and I don't want to cause a problem when I have to live here, but something needs to be done.'
His distraught daughters, 11 and six, were on holiday with their mum at the time of the attack and were told their pet didn't recover from an operation due to him not wanting them to be scared of dogs in the future, but he said the attack has had a lasting effect on the family.
Mr Charles continued: 'It has put us off ever owning a dog again because of this.
I want these dogs banned though, people cannot train them properly because they're too aggressive and can snap at anytime.
'I am nervous about going into my own garden now and don't let my daughters go in the garden on their own because we are concerned about the dog.
'He was part of the family, we have lost a family member all because of one of these dogs.'
The Metropolitan Police eventually gave the owners of the XL Bully a warning as Mr Charles retracted his statement against them.
Footage of the savage dog attack in Birmingham that left an 11-year-old girl and two men injured
The attack comes as the Government is being put under increased pressure to ban the breed following a spate of vicious attacks.
On September 9, shocking CCTV footage captured the moment 11-year-old Ana Paul was pulled to the floor and bitten in Bordesley Green, Birmingham, before it attacked another man trying to help her.
A day later in Maghull, Liverpool, Merseyside Police were called to the scene of an XL Bully attacking a smaller dog after it slipped out of its collar and ran away from its owner.
And in March this year, two XL Bully's attacked Elaine Atkinson's Sprocker Spaniel dog, Rox, while out on a walk in Cumbria - luckily the animal escaped with deep cuts and bite marks to the neck.
A month later, four-year-old Luna Hobson was left with significant injuries to her face after a XL Bully crossbreed attacked her in Nuneaton.
Luna required surgery to the side of her face, with her mum, Amy later saying the dogs were not safe around children at all.
This week the Home Secretary Suella Braverman vowed to ban the breed under the Dangerous Dog Act list.
She argued that they are a 'clear and lethal danger' - particularly to children.
Ms Braverman said she is seeking 'urgent advice'. She tweeted: 'The American XL bully is a clear and lethal danger to our communities, particularly to children.
We can't go on like this.
I have commissioned urgent advice on banning them.'
Dr Lawrence Newport, who has been tracking the rise of fatal attacks by XL bullies which has risen to six in the last year, called the dogs 'uniquely dangerous' .
Ana Paun was walking to the shops with her 18-year-old sister when the powerful breed of bulldog leapt up at her from a bus shelter
Ana remained in hospital for a day and was allowed home to recover last night with a bandaged arm
The researcher offered a stark warning, claiming that if a ban was not brought in 'more children will die, more people will be maimed and more dogs will die'.
He told Sky News: 'You can have a great Dane that is huge, 80kg, but you can't find a single example of one that has killed anyone in the UK.
'It is not about size, it is not about jaw strength, it is about breeding and what the dog has been bred to do.'
If the government is successful with adding XL bullies to the list, they will be the fifth breed to be banned under the 1991 Act, which includes the Pitbull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino and the Fila Braziliero.
There are, however, complications with banning the dog as it is not a pure breed but a cross breed.
The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 bans or restricts certain types of dogs and makes it an offence to allow a dog of any breed to be dangerously out of control.
It was introduced 30 years ago by Home Secretary Kenneth Baker 'to rid the country of the menace of these fighting dogs' after a string of attacks.
WHICH DOGS ARE BANNED IN THE UK?
It is illegal to own four breeds of dogs without an exemption from a court.
They are: American pitbull terriers, Japanese Tosas, Dogo Argentinos and Fila Brazileiros.
The law also criminalises cross-breeds of the above four types of dog - meaning that whether a dog is prohibited will depend on a judgement about its physical characteristics and whether they match the description of a prohibited 'type'.
WHAT HAPPENS IF THERE'S A DOG ATTACK?
You can get an unlimited fine or be sent to prison for up to six months if your dog is dangerously out of control.
You may not be allowed to own a dog in the future and your dog may be destroyed.
If you let your dog injure someone you can be sent to prison for up to five years or fined.
If you deliberately use your dog to injure someone you could be charged with 'malicious wounding'.
And if you allow your dog to kill someone you can be sent to prison for up to 14 years or get an unlimited fine.
WHY IS THE ACT CONTROVERSIAL?
Both the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the British Veterinary Association have protested against the ban, insisting there is no scientific evidence that all individuals of a breed are dangerous.
However, Met Police data suggests that in incidents involving 'dangerously out of control dogs', banned breeds account for about a fifth of offences.