Phoebe McInally was left with a large bald patch and serious bite marks across her back after being attacked by the savage animal.
The girl's mother Lucy, 32, could only watch in horror as the out-of-control South African Boerboel dog then turned and attacked Phoebe's five-year-old sister Alix.
The family were walking through a park in Blantyre, Lanarkshire, as they were set upon by the animal.
The dog - a rare type of Mastiff - only halted its attack when Lucy kicked it so many times it fled.
Lucy, from Rutherglen, Lanarkshire said she believes Phoebe would have died if she was not wearing a thick winter coat.
The sisters were taken to Hairmyres Hospital in East Kilbride where they were treated for their injuries and given antibiotics.
Both girls have been left traumatised by the incident and are now too scared to go outside and are suffering from nightmares. They also need medicine for pain relief.
The horrific incident happened around 4.30pm last Thursday after Lucy had picked Alix up from primary school.
But the quiet stroll in the park soon became a nightmare when they were attacked. She said: 'Phoebe and Alix have been left terrified and are absolutely distraught.
'They have used the park a lot lately and that night was a nice night for a walk. We were in the children's play area when I noticed a tyre swing and we went over to that.
'Then the dog just appeared from nowhere. It got a hold of Phoebe and dragged her and ripped her hair out. I managed to kick it off and pick the girls up and started to run for the car.
'But the dog caught up with us and started attacking us again.
'I threw myself on top of the girls to try and protect them but the dog managed to bite Alix before the kicks I was aiming at it seemed to distract it.'
Strathclyde Police were called to the incident and a 39-year-old woman has now been reported to the procurator fiscal.
The dog has since been destroyed.
Today Lucy, a typist, called for pet owners to keep closer control of their animals.
She said: 'The dog wasn't on a lead and was just too strong for us. A friend of the owner who saw what happened tried to help us but we couldn't do enough to stop it. I want owners to take more responsibility for their animals.'
(Dailymail - March 21, 2012)
