A woman is warning dog owners to be vigilant after her family pet was “almost killed” in a savage attack by another dog in a Bingley park.

Benji, a Parson Russell Cross Patterdale Terrier, suffered a large gash to his shoulder and puncture wounds to his stomach after a dog set upon him while he was being walked by Donna Lewis, 32, in Myrtle Park.

Miss Lewis said she watched in horror as the dog – a black and white bull terrier – bounded towards Benji, grabbed his shoulder in its jaws and started shaking him.

She said: “I thought it was going to kill my family pet. It had hold of it that tightly and it was shaking him so much. When I got home I was shaking and crying and couldn’t talk. It was absolutely awful.”

Miss Lewis, of Denholme Road, Oxenhope, had been walking Benji, who belongs to her 72-year-old grandmother, when the attack happened.

She said the dog had hold of Benji “for what seemed like ages” as its owner tried to pull it away by its leather harness. Once the dog finally let go, she demanded the owner, who was with a woman and another dog – a whippet-type puppy – apologised and asked for his details, which he refused to give.

She then took Benji to The Gatehouse veterinary surgery in Bingley.

Miss Lewis, who walks Benji every day, said: “The vet said there were at least another two people who had gone in and said that this had happened to their Dogs. People need to keep an eye out for this black and white dog. If it had been an old lady walking a Yorkshire terrier, it could have been a very different situation. I just want people to be vigilant.”

Miss Lewis reported the attack to the police, but was told that officers were powerless to take any action because it had been a “dog on dog attack.”

The RSPCA also said officers could not investigate without the owners’ details. She also contacted Bradford Council’s dog warden service, but was told it could not patrol the park because the service did not have enough staff.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said under existing laws, the owner of a dog could be prosecuted for it being “dangerously out of control” under the Dangerous Dogs Act only if it attacked or if it was poised to attack a person.

He said that “dog on dog attacks” could only be dealt with through a civil action.