Scot's American Bulldogs attacked dog owner and attacked and killed her dog
- Rory Cassidy
- May 18
- 2 min read
A dog owner is awaiting sentence after three of his American Bulldogs attacked a pensioner and attacked and killed her dog.
Gareth Rae's pets set upon the woman and her pet dog in an incident in Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire.
They repeatedly bit the 78-year-old, leaving her injured, in the village's Langstilly Road, on December 2, 2025.
The 47-year-old's dogs also attacked and killed the woman's dog during the incident.
Rae now faces having the animals confiscated - and them being put down.
Rae, of Lochwinnoch, admitted his guilt previously during a hearing at Paisley Sheriff Court.
He pleaded guilty to being the owner of 3 American Bulldogs which were "dangerously out of control", in breach of Section 3(1) of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
Sentence had been deferred and Rae returned to the dock today, Monday, May 18, 2026, to be sentenced.
He represented himself during the hearing, where Sheriff Andrew Berry asked him about the case. The sheriff said: "Your three dogs attacked a lady aged 78, her dog died and she was injured? You had a fourth dog and you are the owner?
"If you had a straightforward choice just now, what would you want to happen to your dogs, the three of them involved in this matter? Would you want to keep them?"
Rae said he did want to keep the animals and that he only used them as pets.
He said he had been liaising with the dog warden about the animals, as he still has them, and that the dog warden had been keeping tabs on him.
He explained: "The dog warden has been out to the house to look at the dogs and make sure I'm complying with their regulations."
He said steps had been taken to make sure that the dogs were "kept more securely".
After hearing that prosecutors were still awaiting a report from the Dog Warden, and that a meeting was scheduled for this afternoon with Police Scotland to obtain it, Sheriff Berry adjourned the case until next month.
As he did so, he urged Rae to instruct a solicitor to represent him on the next occasion.
Sheriff Berry said: "Please get a lawyer to be here with you on the next occasion, and just accept the cost, because it's very, very important.
The sheriff also continued considerations of motions from the Crown to have the dogs confiscated and destroyed.
No information was given in court about what injuries the woman suffered or how the attack killed her dog.
Rae's Facebook page shows he has bred a litter of pups, with a post from February 2024 advertising them for sale for £600 each.
One post said: "2 beautiful girls and 1 handsome boy looking for their forever homes."
Another said: "Only 3 left 2girls 1boy £600 each DM me."
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