Desperate woman punches mountain lion in the face before it mauls her dog

A California woman is sadly mourning the loss of her pet dog following a mountain lion attack last week, ABC7 has reported.

According to reports, the Sami Valley resident had let her miniature Schnauzer out into her backyard on December 5, so that he could relieve himself. Sadly, however, after spotting a large cat in the yard, the ten-year-old dog - named Pumbaa - attempted to chase it away, in a losing effort.

The mountain lion quickly "snapped" up Pumbaa, which led to owner Ilene Dondlinger pouncing at the predator, punching and kneeing it in the face in order to free her dog. Dondlinger says she even used her hands to attempt to pry its jaws open.

In the video below, Ilene speaks out about her awful ordeal:

Per NBC, Seargent Keith Eisenhour said: "She obviously cared about her dog very much, as all dog owners do. She tried to fend the animal off by punching it, elbowing it and tried to pry its jaws open."

Speaking to ABC7, Dondlinger's brother also spoke out about the family tragedy: "She got a cut on her finger, and she kept trying to stop the mountain lion from killing the dog for all she could. She said she was punching it and kneeing it in the head and trying to pry its jaws open, and it just wouldn't let go. The whole time she could hear her baby dying."

After becoming physically aggressive with the mountain lion, Ilene realized that the beast had turned its attention onto her, and - recognizing Pumbaa was not going to survive - she retreated into her house.

After calling the police, officials arrived to find the mountain lion seemingly eating Dondlinger's dog. The creature fled before wildlife officials arrived on the scene to shoot it with bean-bag rounds.

Per the Simi Valley Police Department, several other residents in the area have reported mountain lion attacks on their pets. A Havanese named Sammy was also reportedly attacked on December 4, but fortunately survives and is recovering from the injuries.