A man whose two XL Bully’s viciously savaged a family pet while walking on beach has been accused of keeping the dangerous animals for ‘nefarious reasons’.

John Pickering’s dogs jumped out of his car before rampaging across Redcar beach and launching a near-fatal attack on a Husky, which was witnessed by families.

The 51-year-old was told there was no good reason to have the dangerous dogs as a judge at Teesside Crown Court lambasted him for not being able to control the pair.

Recorder Anthony Hawks heard how Pickering’s mental health had declined after his son was murdered as the result on a longstanding family feud and he intended to breed the dangerous dogs.

However, the judge told the defendant that only made matters worse for him.

Sentencing him to two years in custody, he said: “I’m satisfied that your purpose in owning these dangerous and highly unpredictable animals was that you were excited by the fact that owning them and taking them out in public was likely to frighten other people.

“There is no other legitimate purpose for owning animals of that sort. The fact that you told me that you intended to breed them makes matters worse.

“You must have known that if anything untoward happened with those dogs, either in your own home or in public, the size and power of them was such that you were never going to be able to control them.

“So, what were you doing with them? They are dangerous, inherently dangerous animals. The inevitable happened on Redcar beach when children and members of the public were enjoying fresh air and exercising their dogs.

Majuba beach and car parkMajuba beach and car park (Image: GOOGLE MAPS)

“You took them to the beach, a place where you must have known there would be children and other dogs, you opened the boot of your car and the two dogs shot out – there weren’t on leads and they weren’t muzzled.

“Within a matter of minutes, they attacked a Husky dog and nearly tore it to death. This was all witnessed by the public and children, who are no doubt terrified and traumatised for life after witnessing such a savage and despicable incident caused by you.”

John PickeringJohn Pickering (Image: Cleveland Police)

The court heard how the Husky was seriously injured and its owner suffered an injury to her hand when she tried to rescue her family pet from the jaws of the two XL Bully dogs.

The judge added: “I have heard something about your circumstances in a feud which resulted in your son being murdered, That reinforces my view as to the nefarious reasons why you acquired these two dogs in the first place.”

XL Bully - for illustrative purposes onlyXL Bully - for illustrative purposes only (Image: PA)

Annelise Haugstad, prosecuting, had told the court how cost of keep the two dogs in kennels after the were seized by police cost more than £13,000.

In a victim impact statement, the Husky dog’s owner said she had been left traumatised by the incident.

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Pickering, of Eastwood Road, Middlesbrough, pleaded guilty to being the owner in charge of a dog dangerously out of control causing injury, following the bloody incident on February 5 last year.

Gary Wood, mitigating, told Teesside Crown Court how his client’s life had been turned upside down by the murder of his son.

He said: “It had a great impact on his emotional and mental health, so much so that he turned to misusing drugs and alcohol – his mental health was at a really low ebb.”

Pickering was given a lifetime ban from owning pets and the court heard how both XL Bully dogs had been destroyed.