A Morris County family says that they are devastated because their beloved family pet was attacked and killed by a wild animal.

Seth and Erica Elgart say that they have had their 4-year-old Havanese Zoey since she was a puppy.

"She was happy, spunky, loved to play. Loved to play with our kids,” says Erica Elgart.

The Elgarts say that Monday around 2 a.m. they let Zoey and their other dog, a 14-year-old Terrier named Austin, out to do their business. Seth says that Zoey immediately started barking.

"I just saw this silhouette of something, not too much bigger than her, just running at her and she was running towards it, not away,” he says.

The Elgarts say that they believe the animal was a coyote – animal control officers agree.

"It attacked her at the neck and it just picked her up by the neck and ran [away],” Seth says.

Zoey was found dead the next day in the woods with wounds on her neck.

“She was the dog that we said that would grow up with our girls,” says Erica.

The family says that they want to warn other families to always make sure that dogs are kept on leashes in order to protect them from harm.