CLEARWATER, Fla. (WFLA) – A Clearwater woman wants the dog that attacked her own pups put down. The neighbor’s dog, Tyson, a pit bull mix, escaped his own yard, the woman told 8 On Your Side.

Karyn Lehman-Russo said Tyson brutally attacked her 7-year-old Yorkie-Bichon mix, Jake.

“He pushes this part out,” Lehman-Russo said as she pointed to a part of a neighbor’s fence. “Almost like it was a swinging door. He just pushes it out and comes right through.”

Lehman-Russo said it’s through that fence that Tyson escaped. “He’s strong. I mean, it was like a buffalo coming out at Jake,” she said.

Jake and Lehman-Russo’s other dog, Sheba, were taking a bathroom break when the attack occurred. Lehman-Russo said Sheba, a shih tzu, is also recovering from an attack involving Tyson. She said that six days earlier Tyson attacked that dog.

Now Lehman-Russo is scared to go outside. “They’re my children. Especially losing my husband, going through everything I went through with him, they bring so much joy to me,” she said, crying.

She told 8 On Your Side Tyson’s owner offered to pay her soaring vet bills after the first attack and told her they’d find another home for Tyson. “This dog has some screw loose. There’s something wrong up here,” Lehman-Russo said, pointing to her head.

Jake got the worst of it in the second attack. His skin is missing in places, and his internal organs may be damaged. Lehman-Russo has bruises and bite marks herself, which she says are from fending off Tyson.

Lehman-Russo’s friends sent her a get well card for both dogs.

Tyson should be put down, Lehman-Russo said. “I saw evil in that dog’s eyes. I saw anger,” Lehman-Russo said.

8 On Your Side contacted the director of Pinellas County Animal Services. Doug Brightwell said his agency is conducting a “dangerous dog investigation.”

If Tyson is declared dangerous, his owner will have to register him and follow strict guidelines, such as making sure his enclosure is secure.

News Channel 8 tried to talk with Tyson’s owners Tuesday, but nobody answered the door.WHAT OTHERS ARE CLICKING ON RIGHT NOW: