It seemed like just another job. Estate agent Hadda Aboubada couldn't have known when she left her office that the appointment would change her life forever.

The 37-year-old went to a house to make a valuation. Minutes later she was fighting for her life as the homeowner's dog tore a chunk from her leg and dragged her screaming across the lounge floor.

The excited dog had greeted Ms Aboubada at the door of the house, near Crawley, but the owners removed it when she told them it made her uncomfortable.

The estate agent, from Pound Hill, Crawley, said: "I had a look upstairs and came down and viewed the lounge. The dog was in the kitchen but there was a glass door between us so I felt safe. When I had finished I waved at the women to let them know I was finished.

"They opened the door and I made the biggest mistake of my life, staying to talk to them about what a lovely lounge it was.

"I could feel the dog at my feet but thought it was just going to rub against me and go away. Then I heard an alien sound I didn't recognise."

The dog locked its jaw on to Ms Aboubada's calf and wouldn't let go.

She said: "It got me on the ground and dragged me across the floor. I kept screaming and screaming and begging them to get it off.

"It was so scary. I felt I was going to die. Eventually it let go but there was blood everywhere and I saw it had something in its mouth. It had ripped out my muscle and there was a great big hole in my leg."

She ran into the garden and tried to escape over the fence but couldn't get away. A neighbour heard her screams and came to help her.

Ms Aboubada was in hospital for 12 days, confined to her sofa for eight weeks and off work for a year. She still receives counselling.

She underwent extensive plastic surgery but her mental scars have not been helped by the knowledge the dog and its owner escaped punishment.

She said: "I phoned the police from hospital but they said they couldn't come out because the dog attacked me on private property.

"A dog warden later took pictures of my injuries to the police. They then decided to investigate the breed of the dog, which was a bit like a pitbull. It was the only thing the police said they could do.

"But the man sold the dog and there was nothing anyone could do then. I was distraught. I couldn't go to court and felt let down by the justice system.

"Now I am in constant fear and if I see a dog I freeze. Before, I always believed if a dog was with its owner I was safe."

Sally is the mother of a schoolboy who was attacked by a rottweiler while playing in the garden of a neighbour's home. The dog had attacked another child months before.

The boy, 11 at the time of the attack, cannot be named for legal reasons due to his age.

The owner of the dog escaped criminal prosecution because of what the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) called a "gap" in the law.

Civil proceedings followed and magistrates ordered the dog to be destroyed - only to be forced to withdraw the order when the dog's owner revealed she had sold the animal days before.

Sally, 36, of Pease Pottage, near Crawley, has joined Ms Aboubada in campaigning for changes to the law.

She said: "My son was operated on for two hours and needed 29 stitches on the front and back of his leg. He was back and forth to hospital for six months afterwards. He had to be lifted to the toilet for three weeks - which isn't easy for a boy that age.

"Legal proceedings dragged on for 18 months and he went through hell.

"The Government shoved this law through in 1991 with no thought - it's time for a rethink.

"People ask me why I'm doing this when it's too late to help my son but it might help other people.

"People have got to realise when they've got a dog, they've got a potential weapon. If someone shot someone they couldn't get away with it just because they'd sold the gun.

"If a dog attacks on private property there is not much the law can do about it.

"But if someone is invited into the home, that owner should be responsible for keeping that dog under control."

Sally wants to hear from other victims of dog attacks who are unhappy with the way their case was dealt with.

The mother of little Amber Hoole has also joined the campaign.

On Tuesday we told how Amber, four at the time, was scarred for life by her grandfather's Irish wheaten terrier.

The attack took place on private property and attempts to prosecute Anthony Hoole failed when the CPS withdrew the case.

Mrs Hoole was told she would have to give evidence in court against the dog's owner, her father, and she was not prepared to take the witness stand.

Amber's parents say dog owners should be held responsible if an incident takes place on their property, while the decision whether to prosecute should be taken out of the victim's hands.