Princess the Chihuahua and Toby Khanna with his son Thor at home in Poole, Dorset, following the attack In the countryside no-one is surprised when a fox attacks a chicken or a lamb.
But the increasingly brazen attitude of the urban variety has left a family in shock - after their pet dog was savagely killed in their garden.
Princess, a two-year-old Chihuahua did not stand a chance when she was snapped up by the jaws of a large fox which crept onto Toby Khanna's property in broad daylight.
Watched by his devastated young children, the 38-year-old immediately chased after the intruder as it leapt over a 4ft high fence, and although he managed to wrest Princess from its grip, she was already dead.
Mr Khanna said he had been worried about the fox (pictured) for several weeks, after it began visiting his gardenThe attack came after a wild fox attacked twin baby girls as they slept in their cots in London and numerous other incidents of foxes entering people's homes.
Mr Khanna said today he had tried to warn the local authorities about the prowling urban fox long before it killed his dog.
Describing the moment he chased after the wild animal, he said: 'We heard this yelp and suddenly the dog was gone - I couldn't believe how quickly it happened.
'I ran after it into my neighbour's garden, and managed to grab Princess by the legs.
'After a bit of a tug, the fox let go and I took Princess back into our garden. She was totally lifeless. It had broken her neck.'
He added: 'It was heartbreaking to see and the children were obviously very upset.'
Mr Khanna, a full-time father who lives in the centre of Poole, Dorset, said he had returned from dropping his 13-year-old son Jake at school when he let Princess out into the garden of his three-bedroom detached 1920s house.
Getting better: Pauline and Nick Koupparis, with twin daughters Isabella and Lola (right) who were attacked by a fox at their home in East London He then watched in horror with five-year-old India and four-year-old Thor as the fox bolted out of the long grass and snatched the dog.
Mr Khanna. who is separated, said he had been worried about the fox for several weeks, after it began visiting his garden.
When he mentioned it to his local council, he was told they did not deal with foxes and advised him to call the RSPCA instead.
He said yesterday: 'It's a pretty big fox, about the size of a dog, and looks well fed.
'It's been coming into the garden for a few months, scavenging for food, but we keep chasing it out.
'Princess has chased it out a few times herself - once she ended up two roads away.
'She was a brave little thing - she didn't really realise how small she was.'
Mr Khanna continued: 'The fox is obviously getting braver. I presume it came into the garden looking for food.
'My neighbour has a seven-month-old baby and is very worried the fox could hurt it.'
Paying tribute to Princess, he added: 'It's very very sad - she was such a lovely little dog - too brave for her own good.'
An RSPCA spokesman said there was 'very little recorded evidence' that foxes attacked domestic pets.
source: dailymail
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