A stroll in his southeast neighbourhood turned fatal for a Jack Russell Terrier following an attack by a large, aggressive dog.

On Wednesday, David Yautz was walking Skippy, his best friend for the last 10 years, near the intersection of 14 Avenue and 52 Street Southeast in what would be the pair’s final moments together.

“I came around the corner from the building which is right by the tennis courts and this dog comes running from the parking lot, out of nowhere,” recalls Yautz. “I knew he was going after my dog so I grabbed my dog’s leash and pulled my dog up in the air.”

“I didn’t know what to do. What do you do when you see a big pit bull like this running after you?”

Yautz says the larger dog, which was on a leash but without an owner, lunged at Skippy and locked its jaws around the smaller dog’s belly.

After what Yautz says felt like forever, the larger dog’s owner arrived and separated Skippy from the dog’s teeth.

“My dog was just laying limp on the ground and I cuddled him. Of course I started crying because I knew he was dead.”

The owner apologized profusely to Yautz and returned the large dog to the tennis courts where a woman and child (or children) took control of the animal.

The unidentified man drove Yautz and Skippy to an emergency veterinary clinic in his pickup truck and reassured Yautz that he would cover any costs.

“I put him on the vet’s table and the vet checked him with his stethoscope and said he’s dead,” recalls Yautz. ““I went out to talk to the guy and he was gone.”

Yautz has filed a report in connection to the attack. City of Calgary Animal & Bylaw Services officials have launched an investigation and are attempting to locate surveillance video from the neighbourhood.

“I think he’s running and hiding because he knows he’s in trouble. I want justice. I want him charged and I want his dog put down before he attacks another dog or a kid.”

A heartbroken Yautz says the owner of the dog, which he believes is a pit bull with brown and white colouring, was approximately 25 years old and drove a black Chevy or GMC pickup truck with an extended cab or four doors. Yautz says the truck was likely a 2007 model or newer.

Anyone with information about Tuesday’s fatal attack is asked to contact Animal & Bylaw Services.