Terror for terrier's owners as shark snatches pet dog off beach near Sydney

A dog was snatched by a shark as the pet's owners were taking it for a walk along a popular Sydney beach.  

The owners of the American Staffordshire Terrier were left traumatised after watching their pet get dragged under the water after they had thrown a stick for it. 

Molly, a rescue dog, was grabbed by the 3.5-metre shark as it was playing fetch just a few feet from the shore at Bonna Point Reserve in Kurnell on Sunday. 

The dog's owner, Nigel, who declined to give his surname, said there was nothing he or his wife could do to stop the attack.

"We were pretty traumatised, it was horrific," Nigel told Fairfax Media. 

"We were just throwing the stick in the water. The tide was really far out and there was a bit of a drop off," he said.

Nigel said Molly was about five metres off-shore when the shark, believed to be a bull shark, seized her. "It was very quick. It just took her under the water," he said, adding they never saw Molly again. 

Signs have been erected warning the public about the threat of sharks in the area.

"NSW Department of Primary Industries advises people to avoid swimming or surfing when it is dark or during twilight hours and encourages the use of the SharkSmart app which has safety tips for swimmers, surfers, divers, snorkellers and spearfishers," the council said in a statement.

There have been a number of shark sightings in the area in recent weeks.

On February 9, a video clip showed a kiteboarder riding towards a great white at Brighton Beach, in Botany Bay, while a few days later a photographer captured the moment when swimmers were running across shallow waters as a large shark swam past in the foreground.

Around the same time another great white was spotted 10km inland at Alexandra Canal near Sydney Airport. 

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