A dog groomer has defended turning a pooch into The Grinch for Christmas.

A dog

A dog

Gabriel Feitosa transformed a Bichon Frise into the famous anti-festive character by using red and green dyes and shaping its fur with scissors.

The dog stylist from San Diego worked on the four-year-old white dog at the request of its owner.

In a TikTok video, Feitosa explained: "I used non-toxic, vegan pet hair dye to bring out the colours.

"Teddy being a white dog was the perfect model for it and with scissoring, I created shapes to bring the design alive."

The transformation has divided opinion online but the stylist reassured social media users that the canines are looked after correctly.

He said: "People really love it, some are concerned for not knowing how the process is done and if it is safe but I assure you it is completely safe. The dyes are developed specifically for pets and all the ingredients on the dye are FDA approved."