The Scottish SPCA has said it is “crystal clear” there needs to be a change in how dog crime is dealt with in Scotland.

Figures obtained by the Press and Journal have revealed that 60 dangerous dog cases have been brought to court across Grampian and the Highlands since 2016 and March 2019.

Aberdeen Sheriff Court dealt with the highest, with 18 cases, followed by 11 at Peterhead and seven in Inverness.

Only 32 resulted in convictions.

The Scottish Government plans to review the Dangerous Dog Act – which currently prohibits or restricts certain types of dogs and bans any from being dangerously out of control.

Last night, the Scottish SPCA backed plans for reform to benefit both humans and their pets.

Superintendent Tom Gatherer said: “The Scottish Government is going to be reviewing the Dangerous Dogs Act in 2020. We fully support a review of this legislation, to focus on the deed of the dog and not the breed.

“For decades, our position has been crystal clear.

“There is no such thing as a bad breed, and the behaviour and personality a dog displays will always be a circumstance of the environment it is raised in and the training it receives.

“Education is key so that people know how to properly train and care for a dog but also to better understand breeds and what they are bred for.”

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Last month, Public Safety Minister Ash Denham said that police and councils should do more to prevent dangerous dog attacks.

During a debate on dog control legislation, she claimed the powers given to Police Scotland and councils had not been used consistently.

The debate was held after a report by Holyrood’s public audit committee found there were still too many dog attacks and concluded the Control of Dogs (Scotland) 2010 Act was “not fit for purpose”.

The report found there was a lack of consistent data on attacks and said there had been a “failure” to establish a Scottish dog control database.

It also said the act had not resulted in a decrease in dog attack victims or prosecutions of owners.

The background

In the last three years, just three dogs were put down following incidents.

However, that number is expected to rise as a result of a number of cases since March.

In August, a dog called Koos was ordered to be destroyed after biting an Aberdeen musician in the face, leaving him with lifelong scars.

When imposing sentence, Sheriff Morag McLaughlin said: “I have no choice but to order the destruction of Koos. It isn’t the dog’s fault. Who knows what it is about the dog’s experiences to date that has caused him to be the way he is?”

The same month, an Inverness schoolboy was taken to Raigmore Hospital and subsequently transferred to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary to be treated for serious facial injuries, after an alleged attack by a Bullmastiff.

A 42-year-old woman has been reported to the fiscal.