Hunt for ‘aggressive’ dog in Stirlingshire after man bitten

Police are hunting for a dog and its owner after a man was bitten in Stirlingshire.

The cyclist was attacked on the popular Jerah trail at Dumyat, near Menstrie, on Sunday.

Jason Merrilees said he was approached by the dog, which seemed aggressive, before it jumped and bit his leg.

According to the 42-year-old, the female owner of the dog was standing around 30 metres away at the time, along with three other people.

He says one member of the group asked if the dog’s bite had “broken the skin”.

Mr Merrilees told The Courier: “I said: ‘Your dog should have a muzzle on, it’s just bitten me.’

“And the owner said: ‘We’ve tried that before, but it didn’t work’.”

Dog owner said Dumyat attack was because victim ‘was on a bike’

The cyclist said the owner claimed the dog had bitten him because he was on a bike.

Mr Merrilees responded to point out the attack could have been on a child cyclist, to which he claims the owner insisted that would not happen.

He then reiterated that the dog should have been wearing a muzzle, to which one of the group responded: “You should have a muzzle on.”

He told The Courier he then decided to report the incident to the police. He asked for contact details from the group, but they refused.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 4.50pm on Sunday, 17 November 2024, police received a report a man had been bitten by a dog on a track near Menstrie Woods. Enquiries are ongoing to locate the dog and its owner.”

Mr Merrilees said he followed online NHS advice and thoroughly cleaned the wound on his return home.

An online consultation confirmed there are no signs of infection.

‘I just hope it doesn’t happen to somebody else’

But he fears others could be hurt by the same dog.

He said: “I’m just hoping something gets done or she even gets spoken to, so that doesn’t happen to somebody else.

“There was a wee girl walking with her mum and dad just two minutes down the trail – it could have been her.”

The cyclist said he is also more nervous when out on his bike and he see dogs off the lead.

“You wouldn’t mind as long as it was under control. Now, every time I’m coming up to a dog, I don’t know how it’s going to react,” he said.

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