IT is news that will not shock the owners who have seen their pet dogs savaged in Dorset and the New Forest over the past year.

The Dogs Trust said there has been a large increase in the number of “dog on dog” attacks, particularly in urban areas.

Veterinary director Chris Laurence said: “We are getting more and more reports of dogs that are perfectly innocently walking through a park being set upon by an aggressive dog.

“It’s an increasing trend and sadly, when there is a disparity in size, the small dog ends up being killed.”

The Echo has reported numerous such cases.

Last summer, a Yorkshire terrier was mauled to death by a Staffordshire bull terrier cross in West Howe, Bournemouth.

And this spring Helen King’s Yorkshire terrier Twiggy lost one front leg when she was savaged by a mastiff-cross in Charminster, Bournemouth.

She said: “When I see another dog, my heart plummets and my stomach churns.

“She just hides between my legs as if to say ‘pick me up’.

“The thing that sticks in my mind more than anything is the little golden head between the dogs jaws being shaken about.”

She added: “A lot of people talk about bringing back the dog licence but it’s not realistic. We need to educate the next generation.”

Jo Story, the RSPCA officer covering Bourne-mouth and parts of Poole and Christchurch, said it was not clear if there had been a rise in attacks.

However she said there had been an increase in the number of abandoned mastiff-type dogs that were turning up in animal shelters.

Sheila Meredith from Waggy Tails rescue in Wimborne, which covers Bournemouth and Poole, said the problem is caused by people not training their puppies correctly.

She added: “At the moment breeders, must be regulated by the local authority, but I would be surprised if any local authority checked all but the biggest breeders. We need licences for each breeding dog.”