EXCLUSIVE: Paisley postman mauled by dog says animal should be put down

Clyde News is speaking exclusively to a postman who was mauled by a dog as he made his rounds in Paisley last year. Alan Quinn had just dropped off mail at an address on Strathcarron Road in the Dykebar area of town in September last year when the German Shepherd named Mally attacked.

The 48 year-old was rushed to the Royal Alexandra Hospital with serious hand and arm injuries and was forced to take 12 weeks off work. The animal's owner Fraser Gardiner was found guilty of being in charge of an out of control animal at Paisley Sheriff Court last month and will be sentenced on Friday.

Alan has been left with permanent scaring and says: "It was just a normal day, just out doing my delivery. I walked up to the door, I'd been delivering to the same door for years so it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. The gate was open but that wasn't unusual either, put the mail in the box and then I heard the dog barking.

"I turned round and there it was running towards me. That was that. There was nothing I could do and no where for me to go. Next thing I was lying on the ground with chunks out me screaming for help.

"Everybody that delivered to that door knows about that dog. I always knew if it ever got out into the street it would get me. It had just never got out before. You just knew it would try to get you if it could. I'd always been wary. But, the owner had always kept it under control until that point.

"I had numerous bites on my right arm and it tried to get me in the leg and ripped my trousers. There were scratches on my legs from the paws. It was a nice day and I had a short sleeved t-shirt on so there was nothing to protect my arms.

"I only got one stitch because when it's dog bites they don't like to close them up incase infection sets in. I was bandaged up for about three months and had to wrap my arms up in poly-bags to shower and the dressing what changed all the time. It was about three months before I could wear a short sleeve t-shirt again.

"I couldn't move it for a while. I was really worried I wouldn't get the feeling back. My arm was numb and I was frightened to move it. I've got permanent scaring. The redness will eventually go down but I'll be left with marks.

"I'm more wary now when I hear a dog barking. I think anyone in here would be lying if they said they hadn't had some sort of near miss with a dog.

"I don't see how they could rehabilitate a dog like that. It was out of control. I'm not exactly a wall flower and I was powerless. I can't imagine if it'd been a child. At the end of the day we still need to go and deliver to that address, not me personally but someone in here has too. I'd welcome it being destroyed."