Seagulls can be absolute fiends. We've all experienced the shock of walking along the seafront eating a sandwich or pastry, only to have a huge seagull appear out of nowhere and steal our lunch. However, your lunch is nothing compared to what one woman in the UK is currently having to deal with.
Becca Hill, from Paignton, England, has been left distraught after her four-year-old dog called Gizmo was taken from her backyard by a swooping seagull. The 24-year-old has now issued an urgent appeal to find her miniature chihuahua, placing all her hopes in the power of social media.
Incidents like this are more common than you may think. This footage shows a young woman trying to save her dog from a hawk:Speaking to local press Devon Live, Becca said: "My partner was in the garden putting the washing out at the time and suddenly he saw it swoop down. It carried Gizmo a fair way as we couldn't see him anymore. I have no idea if he was dropped or where he is now."
Becca's partner, who was in the backyard hanging out the laundry, witnessed the incident on Sunday afternoon, and the brown and white male dog is still missing.
Miss Hill, who owns two other chihuahuas, also said that although she has heard of this happening to other people in the past, she never expected it to happen to her.
Devon Live reports that there have been several reported incidents of small dogs being attacks by birds in the county. In May 2015, another Devon pet owner, Niki Wayne, had to endure watching in horror as her chihuahua puppy was killed by a flock of seagulls.
The 57-year-old was in the shower when the incident occurred, and she says that the puppy, called Bella, managed to nudge open a door in order to get outside. The mom-of-five later found Bella being pecked to death by the birds.
Wayne has since issued warnings to other residents to be more vigilant.
Gizmo is still missing, and his family has asked anyone with information to please get in touch.
An RSPB spokesman said: "This must be extremely upsetting for the dog's owner. Fortunately, these types of incidents are very rare and not typical gull behavior."