A STAFFORDSHIRE bull terrier chased a small dog into its own home and attacked it.

A shocked woman, seeing her Lhasa Apso being mauled, tried to intervene and she too was bitten during the early morning incident in Dunfermline.

The owner of the bull terrier is 43-year-old Siobhan Hunter, of Jennie Rennie’s Road.

She submitted a guilty plea by letter at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.

She admitted that on March 24 at Jennie Rennie's Road, she was the owner of a Staffordshire bull terrier which was dangerously out of control whereby it attacked and mauled another dog, injuring it and its owner.

Depute fiscal Catherine Stevenson said at 6.20am a woman let her dog out into the front garden with the gate closed.

She then heard loud barking outside and opened her front door. Her dog came running back into the house and she saw the Staffy at her gate.

It then “barged the gate open” and ran into the house, jumping on to the small dog.

“When the woman grabbed the Staffy it nipped her on the finger causing a cut,” added the depute.

“The Staffy then continued to attack the small dog, biting and clawing at its back."

Hunter then came running out of her house directly opposite and “rugby tackled” her own dog before taking it home.

The vet bill for the injured dog was £1,000 and the woman received medical attention for her bite.

Sheriff William Gilchrist deferred sentencing until July 24 for Hunter’s personal appearance in court.