This is the moment a father and son release the little pet frog they raised from a tadpole only to watch it get eaten by a big fish within seconds.

The grim scene, which took place before the young boy’s eyes, took place in the city of Dalian in the north-eastern Chinese province of Liaoning last week, and the video has been widely shared on the social network Douyin.

According to the boy’s mother Ms Sha, the family raised the little frog at home from a tadpole and decided to release it into a local river when it was big enough to survive on its own.

However, as seen in the footage, the frog’s bid for freedom only lasted a matter of seconds.

In the video clip, the father and son are seen enjoying a tender moment on the end of a small river dock as they open the lid to a container, the frog’s temporary home, and release it into the wild.

The little frog is seen happily hopping into the water with a small splash.

The dad points to the green amphibian in the water as it swims away and the pair apparently shares a tender bonding moment together.

Sadly, the moment is shattered when the water ripples loudly and a big fish strikes and swallows the frog whole.

The pair falls silent and says “oh no” as they realise their little pet has just become fish food.