Jake Massey
A grandmother has been killed by a pit bull she took into her holiday home as a starving stray.
Anne Shields, from Preston, Lancashire, was suddenly attacked by the dog in Macastre, near Valencia, in Spain, at the end of February, with neighbours calling the authorities after hearing her screams.
Police shot dead the pit bull so medics could reach the 67-year-old, who was rushed to hospital having lost 40 percent of her blood, according to El Espanol.
Advert
Tragically, her catastrophic injuries proved fatal.
Former security guard Anne bought the Spanish property with her late husband Martyn back in 2002.
As an animal lover, she felt compelled to help the malnourished pit bull, and when all the shelters were full she decided to take him in, naming him Choccy.
Anne's daughter, Sarah, told The Sun: "She was an animal lover and couldn't bear the thought of throwing Choccy back on the streets.
"Her intention had never been to keep the dog but all the animal shelters were full.
"She was looking after him until she found someone who could take him.
"She stuck with him and then this happened. It's a nightmare."
Sarah added that her mum had arranged a meeting with someone to collect the dog on the day of the attack.
The mum-of-two added: "She was so caring. This hasn't really sunk in. We'll miss her so much."
Sarah doesn't blame the dog for the fatal attack, insisting that both Anne and Choccy are victims.
Instead, she points the finger at the dog's previous owner that abandoned him in the street.
Speaking to El Espanol, Sarah said: "I hope that the media coverage will allow us to find the owner who abandoned this dog knowing it was a dangerous breed.
"She didn't deserve this, and Choccy didn't deserve what happened to him before my mum found him."
Pit bulls were banned in the UK in 1991 under the Dangerous Dogs Act following a spate of fatal attacks; however, they can still be legally owned in Spain.
Regardless, Sarah questioned why a vet allowed Anne to take the dog in.
She said: "I don't understand why he let my mother take the dog home after they did a blood test and showed that he was a purebred pit bull."