Woman brutally mauled by bulldog inside own home

A Florida woman was injured to the point of needing skin grafts after a bulldog she rescued from the streets attacked her inside her own home.

Sabreena Deen told Inside Edition that she first spotted the dog, a 90-pound American bulldog named Zeus, wandering around her neighborhood in Hollywood, Fla., about a month ago.

The animal lover, who already had two small dogs, a cat and a few birds at home, took the dog to a vet and discovered he was microchipped.

Zeus' owner had recently moved to Peru and left the dog to a friend, who, when contacted, claimed they were unaware he had escaped, according to WTVJ. The friend asked Deen to care for Zeus until someone could pick him up, a request which she obliged.

At first, Deen claims the dog displayed nothing but a gentle demeanor.

"The dog was very friendly, he was so sweet," she told the outlet. "I would kiss him on the face and hug him and play with him."

However, Zeus' behavior rapidly became aggressive, and on Feb. 7, just a few weeks after being brought into Deen's family home, the dog attacked and killed her 18-year old cat, Oreo.

Although she was severely shaken up by the incident, Deen still vowed to care for Zeus until two days later, when he attacked both of her small dogs and eventually turned on her when she tried to intervene.

"I was doing everything I could to break them up and he was just rolling around and finally, he turned on me and clamped on to my arm and wouldn’t let go," she said. "I was trying everything."

Surveillance footage captured the dog deadlocked on Deen's bleeding forearm as she frantically attempted to fight him off. Eventually, Deen can be seen making her way to her front door and calling to her father, who was outside mowing the grass at the time of the attack. He swiftly grabbed a broom and began beating Zeus until the dog released his daughter's arm.

Animal control officers responded to the scene and took the dog away to be euthanized.

Although Deen had to have multiple skin grafts to repair the major wounds to her arm and leg, she says she still feels bad Zeus had to be put down.

"I was sad, I started to cry because, besides this situation, he was a good dog," she told Inside Edition.

A GoFundMe page has been started to help Deen cover her medical bills, which she estimates will cost around $200,000.