The order was made after a behaviour expert admitted she could not safely assess the risk the dog posed – amidst fears the dog could attack her in turn.

Owner Colin Kenmure, 40, was convicted of being in charge of a dog that was dangerously out of control in Main Street, Holytown.

Hamilton Sheriff Court heard the bulldog, called Blue, viciously clamped its jaws on the youngster’s arm.

The girl had broken her arm the previous day and only the plaster cast she was wearing saved her from a potentially serious injury.

Her teenage sister who tried to intervene said they were walking home from a swingpark when the attack happened in June 2018.

She told the court: “We crossed the road and the dog just went for my sister.

“It jumped on her right arm and started biting her.

“She was crying and screaming.

“I tried to to wedge myself between them and get the dog off her.

“I remember a woman coming out of a chip shop and pulling the dog away.”

Before sentencing, Sheriff Thomas Millar asked for an expert report “to see if the dog is considered a danger and if any measures can be put in place to alleviate any such danger”.

Defence agent Diarmid Bruce said Kenmure of Bellshill Road, Motherwell, still owned Blue and had another dog too.

The lawyer added: “He seems to care a great deal for them.”

But, in a report to the court, the animal behaviour expert said Blue’s demeanour had made it impossible to make an assessment.

The report stated: “If a dog shows any sign of aggression we can’t get close enough to carry out an assessment.

“Blue has a very unstable temperament in my opinion.”

The sheriff ordered Blue to be destroyed.