UNITED KINGDOM -- FARMER David Barnes has told how he and his young grandchildren fled from a six-stone dog which charged towards them after killing nine sheep.
He had just discovered the slaughtered animals when he spotted the Bernese mountain dog running riot on his land.
The dog has been put down as a result of the incident, which happened on Wednesday.
The Cliffords Mesne farmer described how he stumbled upon the gruesome scene.
"We walked into one of the fields and we found a dead sheep, but I didn't think much of it – you quite often get the odd dead sheep," he said.
"Then we walked into the next field and saw another dead sheep, and another and another, and then I saw the dog in the corner of the field. When it saw us, it came at us, so we turned and ran."
After reaching safety, Mr Barnes called the police who arrived fully armed to deal with the situation.
"They came with their guns and they went out into the field in my pick-up truck for safety," said Mr Barnes.
"They shot at it but rather than run off the dog came at the police in the truck, I couldn't believe it. Then they shot it and it ran off into the woods."
The dog had suffered a flesh wound and disappeared into the night. However, Mr Barnes was fearful for people's safety so he went looking for the predator the next morning.
He said: "I eventually tracked it with my collie dogs and managed to herd it back to its owner. To be fair to them, they accepted all responsibility for it. This must have cost me over £1,000. The dog has been put down now, which I agree with, it was so aggressive."
In March, eight of Mr Barnes' lambs were killed by spaniels.
"Their owners accepted no responsibility for that at all," he said. "If people are going to buy dogs they should make sure they are properly trained. It's not the dogs to blame, it's the owners."
(This is Gloucestershire - June 10, 2013)
