AN EIGHT-stone American bulldog which attacked a cavapoo and its owner on St Bees beach must be destroyed, a judge has ruled. 

At Carlisle Crown today, a judge told owner Jonathan Foxcroft that his bulldog Boss was a danger to the public after hearing that it had continued the distressing attack despite the efforts of four adults to stop it.

The defendant had earlier pleaded guilty to being the owner of a dog that caused injury while it was dangerously out of control.

During the hearing, Judge Ian Unsworth KC outlined how the owner of the cavapoo, who was left with multiple puncture wounds on her hand and an injury on her face after she tried to protect her dog, had seen Foxcroft after the incident walking Boss when it was not wearing a muzzle.

She felt unable to forgive him, the court heard.

At the time of the attack, on September 14 last year, said the judge, the bulldog was being treated with steroids for a skin condition and a dog expert had suggested that this may have affected Boss’s behaviour.

Judge Unsworth then provided a summary of the distressing incident.

He said that Foxcroft  was on the beach in the early evening, walking his 50kg dog, which was not on a lead, when it became “dangerously out of control”, attacking the cavapoo, called Aoife, knocking its owner, a 66-year-old local woman, to the ground.

The judge described Boss as a 'powerful' dog.

When later questioned by the police, Foxcroft described his dog by saying: “It’s an American bulldog: he’s massive, you know what I mean?”

Describing the incident, Judge Unsworth said Foxcroft had been with a friend who had a Staffordshire bull terrier, also off its lead. They had stopped to talk to a family who were curious about Boss.

Foxcroft mentioned that the dog was in its 'terrible twos' phase, though Boss was actually three and a half years old. The cavapoo was playing with a ball when the other two dogs began to 'crowd it', prompting Aoife's owner to shoo Boss away.

At this point, Boss knocked the woman off her feet, making her fall into a nearby stream. The bulldog then grabbed the cavapoo in its mouth and shook it. Getting back to her feet, the owner made desperate attempts to rescue Aoife while Foxcroft also intervened, kicking his dog.

The cavapoo was eventually freed, and the woman who owns it scooped it up and then curled up on the ground in a ball to protect Aoife. Boss was overpowered only after Foxcroft – who was himself bitten – lay on top of it and, helped by the bystanders, looped the lead around his dog's neck.

In an earlier hearing, defence barrister Anthony Parkinson told the court: “Whilst this was deeply unpleasant for the victim and the victim’s dog, this whole incident is as near to an accident as one can get.

"He didn’t perceive that this incident was going to occur.

“But he accepts in hindsight that he could have taken more care in the sense that if he had had his dog on a lead at the time this incident would never have taken place. It’s for this reason that he’s entered his guilty plea.”

Mr Parkinson said Foxcroft was an experienced dog owner. Before the incident, there had been no indication that Boss had it within him to be so aggressive.

“At the time, he did everything he could to stop it, including putting himself in harm’s way,” he said.

Judge Unsworth accepted that what happened was an 'isolated incident' and that there had been no prior indication of an issue with Boss.

But the judge said, after carefully considering the expert report, he had concluded that his public duty meant Boss should be destroyed. “This was, on any objective view, a serious incident, without any provocation," the judge told Foxcroft.

“Your dog launched into attacking another smaller dog, shaking that dog from side to side in its mouth. That dog’s owner was knocked to the ground.”

Boss had not responded to the instruction to stop even after it was struck; it carried on regardless. “In the truest sense, it was dangerously out of control,” said the judge. “At one point, four adults were holding on to your dog.”

Immediately after the incident, once Boss had been brought under control, Foxcroft refused to provide his details, while the victim’s dog needed surgery to repair its dislocated hip, the court heard.

A dog expert had described the attack that led to the prosecution as a "random event" triggered by a combination of factors, all of which could have been prevented had Boss been on a lead.

Boss was plainly a dangerous dog and, said the judge, even if suggested precautions – such as muzzling and training for the defendant - were taken, he could not discount a 'random event' reoccurring.

Nor could he be sure that Foxcroft or others would be able to prevent it. The judge said: “If [Boss] attacked another adult or child, I have no confidence that he could be stopped from doing that.

"He is a large, powerful dog, weighing approximately eight stone."

An expert had concluded that Boss had an independent and 'mildly dominant persona'. But the dog ignored the pleas of his owner, and physical intervention, with four adults unable to control him.

The judge concluded Boss was a danger to public safety.

Noting the genuine remorse shown by the defendant, Judge Unsworth imposed a 12-month community order, with five rehabilitation activity days and 60 hours of unpaid work. The defendant must pay £250 compensation Aoife’s owner.

As he left the courtroom, Foxcroft indicated that he would appeal against the destruction order. He has 28 days to lodge an appeal before he is obliged to hand over the dog to the police for the order to be carried out.