A US man who got his dog’s leash caught in an elevator door says he feared the worst and did not want to look out of the lift doors as they opened.
Security camera video shows the Chicago man entering his apartment building with his dog on a leash, but when he gets in the lift to go upstairs his pet remains outside.
The doors close, separating him and his dog as the lift begins to travel upwards.
Outside the lift, the 18-month old bulldog cross is yanked to the ceiling by the leash — but it luckily snaps and the dog falls back to the ground uninjured.
"I was very scared and worried," the man, who did not want to be named, told ninemsn.
"I was expecting the worst case scenario. I actually almost didn't want to open the door and see what had happened on the lobby side."
He was returning to his apartment after walking his dog last week when the frightening episode occurred.
"I thought the elevator would sense the leash and reopen, but it was too late," he said.
In his panic the owner didn’t think of simply letting go of the leash.
"I wish I would have let go of the leash, but it all happened so fast that it pulled me in and it was impossible to take my hand out of the strap."
"I actually broke a bone in my hand and fractured my wrist," the man said.
Fortunately for the bulldog, his owner's broken hand was the only injury sustained in what could have been a fatal accident.
The owner added he was happy that someone stayed with the dog while he was in the lift.
"I really owe one to fate and to the girl who stood by the dog," he said.