Dog mauled by 'XL bully' in Glasgow as locals left 'terrified' to leave their homes

A woman has been left "terrified" to leave her home in Glasgow after her elderly dog was mauled by an out-of-control 'XL bully'.

Marion Thomson's husband, Barry, was walking Scamp near their home in the Craigend area of the city when he was savaged by the unmuzzled and unleashed dog at 1.15am on Sunday, May 5. Barry and 13-year-old Scamp were heading towards a set of fields when the suspected bully appeared out of nowhere and launched an attack.

It pounced on the couple's elderly pet and pinned him to the ground before taking a chunk out of an area between his neck and shoulder. Barry was forced to jump on top of both dogs in a desperate attempt to stop the large dog from killing helpless Scamp.

Marion has said that locals have been left terrified to leave their homes following multiple reports of XL bully attacks in their area.

Speaking to our sister title, Glasgow Live, she said: "It appeared out of nowhere and pinned Scamp to the ground by the neck. My husband had to lie across it because he thought it was going to kill him. The attack lasted around five minutes before they could be broken apart."

Scamp was rushed to a nearby vet who said they wouldn't be able to close his wounds because they had become infected. The dog has now been given antibiotics, however, due to his age, Marion fears he might not survive.

She added: "They can't stitch him because his shoulder is badly infected, it has to come out first, and the swelling goes down before they can even think of that. We're worried it's going to finish him off, he's 13.

"Even outside of his injuries, it's going to take a long time for him to build up the confidence he once had. He's scared to approach us which isn't like him, he's usually a daddy's boy. He's also not eaten since Sunday."

The couple contacted the police following the incident and gave them the address provided by the person who owned the dog. However, it is claimed that when officers arrived the owner denied that her dog had attacked the pup.

Marion says she now worries for the life of her two-year-old granddaughter with the owners of the dog only living a street away. She also claims that locals are now scared to go outside following two other incidents in the area involving an XL Bully attacking dogs.

She added: "We've got a two-year-old granddaughter that comes to visit. What would happen if it went for her? What would have happened if it had turned on my husband?

"The dog is a danger. Every dog owner here is terrified to take their dog out because of what's going on."

Marion now believes it could take a child being attacked in a serious incident for police to clamp down on XL Bully owners who flaunt the law and refuse to control their dogs.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 1.15am on Sunday, 5 May, 2024, officers received a report of a dog having attacked another dog on Mossvale Way, Glasgow. Enquiries are ongoing.”

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