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A horrifying Pit Bull attack caught on CCTV shows how the out-of-control animal savaged a tiny dog after leaping out of a lift and clamping its powerful jaws around its victim's head.

In the CCTV footage, a woman is seen waiting for the lift with her pooch – an apricot-coloured "Spitz" or "Pomeranian" breed – on a lead standing by the doors.

When the lift doors open, a giant white dog rushes out and attacks the smaller dog – lifting the terrified creature into the air by its head.

At one point, the Pit Bull appears to have the Pomeranian's head in its mouth as it drags it back inside the lift while both female owners struggle to separate them.

(Image: CEN)

When the dangerous dog eventually lets go of the small pooch, it is seen lying motionless on the floor as its owner drags it along by the lead.

When she realised her dog was seriously unwell, the Pomeranian owner went home to wrap her poor pooch in a blanket before taking it to a nearby vet, local media reports.

The incident took place at a block of flats on Semion Paliy Street in the city of Odessa in the southern Ukrainian region of Odessa Oblast.

Identified only by her first name Aniuta, the distraught dog owner claimed that her pooch had nearly died from its injuries and had needed several life-saving surgeries before it was discharged from the vets.

“My dog was in intensive care all night," she told local media.

"It suffered multiple traumas and was in a life-threatening situation twice. Vets carried out a complicated operation and I was eventually able to take my pet home.”

(Image: CEN)

According to Aniuta, her Pomeranian was diagnosed with a fracture of the cervical vertebra, a fractured skull, and the cerebral cortex was damaged as well as its spinal cord.

It currently remains unclear if the dangerous dog owner will face punishment for not using a muzzle on her pet.

Local media claimed the dangerous dog was an American Pit Bull Terrier and social media users claimed the controversial dogs ought to be banned in Ukraine, like they are in many other countries including the UK.

(Image: Getty / pascal kiszon)

One man said: “It is a shame for the little dog, but what if it was a child instead? These people must be stupid to walk their dogs without a muzzle.”

“They should ban these dogs in our country, like many other European countries have," commented another person.

This comes after two teenagers were arrested after cruelly cutting off the ears of a Pit Bull to make the poor dog look "more vicious".