A kennel owner has told appeal court judges they were wrong to sentence a rottweiler to death.
Sylvia Pass, who has run Langdyke Boarding Kennels near Kennoway for 13 years, said two-year-old Kai was “a big softie”.
Kai has been on death row at the kennels since he attacked a Canadian tourist in Montrose in June.
“He’s been with me 24/7 for six months and he’s never been any trouble,” said Ms Pass. “He’s more likely to lie on his back and want his belly rubbed than to attack someone.
“I will do everything I can to save Kai because he’s a big softie.”
Kai’s fate could be taken to the Scottish legal body that reviewed the conviction of the Lockerbie bomber.
The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) could be asked to assess whether a miscarriage of justice may have occurred after an attempt to gain a pardon for Kai failed.
The dog was sentenced to be destroyed in November by Sheriff Gregor Murray following the Montrose attack, but Kai’s owner instructed lawyers to seek a reprieve.
Judges sitting at Edinburgh’s Sheriff Appeal Court this week ruled the sheriff acted correctly and the animal has to be destroyed because it still “constitutes a danger”.
Ms Pass said she has been around dogs for 45 years and stressed that Kai isn’t a danger to anyone.
She said: “It has been an ownership issue right the way through. These dogs are often bought as a status symbol and it gives the breed a bad name.
“If this had been a lab or a collie I think the decision would have been different.”
During the trial, James Ryan, 62, of Montrose, was found guilty of being in charge of Kai when he bit Canadian visitor Charles Andrews on the leg and arms on Lower Hall Street on June 11. The court heard the two-year-old attacked Mr Andrews as it was “protective” of a child it was walking beside.
Kai’s owner Wendy Ross, 34, from Montrose, has said she is prepared to give up ownership to save his life.
Experts reckoned Kai could be neutered and given a muzzle but that failed to sway appeal judges and it is likely the SCCRC will be asked to intervene.