A dog walker has been left fighting for her life after she was attacked by a huge lioness that had escaped from its owner in Spain.

The two-year-old female lion named Salome was being kept by a private owner in the Mexican city of Aguascalientes when it suddenly escaped.

While on the run, it had entered the property owned by the 40-year-old woman identified only as Liliana H.

She was out walking her pet dog at the time and when she returned home, the lioness pounced on her.

The dog was killed and the lion then turned its attention to the woman, biting her on the legs and arms and head and leaving her seriously injured.

She was transferred to the Hidalgo hospital, where her condition was described as serious.

Locals say it was not the first time that the lion, which is treated as a pet by its owner, had escaped and, in the past, had killed other cats and dogs.

After the attack, the lioness was captured by its owner, a 34-year-old man named only as Giovanni Javier, he put it inside his car in order to drive it home.

Police then turned up at the man’s house and confiscated the lioness, which has been handed over to the State Attorney for Environmental Protection. They confirmed it was currently being held at Rodolfo Landeros park.

Several pictures and videos have been circulating of the escape lion, including one showing its muzzle covered in blood after reportedly partially eating the dog.