A WOMAN whose vicious dog mauled a terrified woman and another canine has lost her battle to save the angry animal.

Elizabeth McLaughlin,33, allowed her powerful boxer mutt Reggie to attack horrified Vivienne Wallace,41, as she lay in a street in Linwood, Renfrewshire, in August 2013.

The dog also attacked Vivienne's prized Shih Tzu Ralph during the horrifying incident.

McLaughlin, also of Linwood, was fined £250 and ordered to hand over £90 compensation to Vivienne. She was also banned from having custody of a dog for 12 months and Sheriff Carol Kelly at Paisley Sheriff Court ordered Reggie to be destroyed.

On Tuesday, lawyers acting for McLaughlin addressed the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh in a bid to have Reggie saved.

Arguing for McLaughlin's sentence to be quashed, solicitor advocate Simon Collins argued that Reggie could benefit from formal training.

But judge Lady Dorrian disagreed and ruled that Reggie was so dangerous that it had to be destroyed.

She added: "The appeal is refused."

McLaughlin was convicted under the Dangerous Dogs Act at Paisley Sheriff Court in January 2014.

During proceedings, Vivienne said she was forced to protect Ralph when Reggie attacked.

The court heard how neighbours ran to her aid as she lay on the ground, screaming for help.

Ms Wallace was walking her dog in Kintyre Avenue when she spotted Reggie bounding towards her.

Re-living her ordeal, she recalled desperately trying to fend off the dog as it stood up on its hind legs and bit her on the face.

She said it then knocked her to the ground before sinking its teeth into her arm and hand as she attempted to shield her own dog from harm.

A witness said that McLaughlin had been heard shouting for the five-year-old boxer cross to come back inside.

When it did not respond, she simply went back inside her house, the court was told.

Others who were in the street and heard Ms Wallace screaming for help went to her aid and eventually managed to pull the dog away, the court was told.

Giving evidence against McLaughlin, Ms Wallace told how she ended up lying face down in the street, with her own pet under her in a frantic bid to protect him.

The bite to her arm had left a gash that required nine stitches and she also had a cut to her face stitched.

She added: "I am terrified walking my dog now. I get very anxious when I hear other dogs barking and I am very vigilant about where I go with my dog."

On Tuesday, Mr Collins urged the court to consider evidence from experts who thought Reggie could be tamed through training.

Mr Collins told the court that this was a more appropriate way to deal with the dog.

However, Lady Dorrian ruled that Sheriff Kelly acted correctly and that Reggie should be put down.