'My dog is on death row'

A faithful St Bernard guard dog faces the death sentence for deterring an intruder at his owner's home.

Unfortunately, the "intruder" was a police sergeant who allegedly ignored a Beware Of Dog sign and the owner's shouted warning, as he wandered into the garden to ask for directions.

Ten-stone Yogie was removed from Steve Prestage's house by seven policemen dressed in full body armour three days after he sank his teeth into the sergeant's arm.

The six-year-old dog is one of a number of St Bernards that Mr Prestage has owed. All have been trained to deter intruders after his home in Crawley, West Sussex, was burgled five times in nine months.

Now Mr Prestage and his wife Tina have launched a petition and a campaign to save Yogie, who is languishing in police kennels before being put down. They could also face a jail sentence or a costly prosecution if they oppose their pet's destruction.

Mr Prestage claims the attack was an unfortunate accident caused by the sergeant's "foolish" decision not to take the sign seriously and is furious at the police's decision to put his pet on "death row".

He said: "I saw a van pulling up our lane, the policeman got out and was walking in and my dog, who had been lying down, got up and started barking at him.

"This chap must have been mad because he carried on walking towards the dog and I said, 'Don't come any further. He will bite you'.

"He did get bitten and was bleeding. I pulled Yogie back and brought him under control.

"He was just defending the property. I later found out that the officer was looking for something like Rosewood Cottage, and we live at Wilderness Cottage."

The couple first got a St Bernard as a guard dog in 1986 after a string of burglaries. Yogie has been with them for three years, during which time the Prestages have never been robbed.

"He'd been owned by a boy who beat him with a stick, so he would bite if anyone raised their hands," said Mrs Prestage, an airport worker. "But we trained Yogie out of that. We have a dangerous dog sign clearly on display and usually keep the gate closed, but it was open for a few minutes because my husband was out in the garden with him. The policeman got out of his van and walked in the gate, even though he could see the sign and the dog barking.

"My husband shouted at him to stay still while he got hold of the dog, but he kept walking and waving his arms and the dog went for him."

Mr Prestage said: "We won't let them kill him. Yogie is part of the family." He accused the police of Gestapo tactics. "I think this is pathetic. The police must have more money than they know what to do with."

Yogie is being held at a secret "death row" kennels, and the Prestages are allowed to see him once a month.

The sergeant was treated in hospital for two days after sustaining puncture wounds to his arm, and Sussex Police are preparing a prosecution, which is thought to be based on the officers claim that he was attacked "outside the owner's premises".

A spokesman for the force said: "The severity of the wound meant that the dog was seized under the powers of the Dangerous Dogs Act. We cannot comment on the case and therefore we cannot say what lies ahead for the dog."