Dog destroys £40,000 Elvis teddy

[Guest guest]

Security guard Greg West does not know what made Barney do it

A £40,000 teddy which used to belong to Elvis Presley was among

scores of toy bears destroyed when a dog meant to guard them went on

the rampage.

Doberman Barney was looking after the rare Steiff bear, named Mabel,

which had been loaned for an exhibition at Wookey Hole Caves near

Wells, Somerset.

 

The dog ripped the head off the bear and attacked scores of other

teddies.

 

Barney's owner could only suggest that the bear had a rogue scent on

it - or that Barney had become jealous of it.

 

The bear, made in Germany in 1909, was bought at auction in Memphis,

Tennessee, by Somerset aristocrat Sir Benjamin Slade.

 

Heads pulled off, arms, legs here and there, it was a total carnage

really

 

Wookey Hole general manager Daniel Medley told the BBC: " About 100

bears were caught up in this frenzied attack, some were merely little

chews, whereas some of them had some quite devastating injuries.

 

" Heads pulled off, arms, legs here and there, it was a total carnage

really. I've never seen such a mess, there was stuffing, fluff and

bear bits everywhere. "

 

As well as Mabel, Barney caused an estimated £20,000 damage to other

bears in the collection.

 

Other teddies worth about £20,000 were damaged

Security guard Greg West, who was on duty at the time, is at a loss

to explain what happened to make Barney go so " berserk " .

 

Mr West, 36, of Totterdown, Bristol, said: " Barney has been a model

guard dog for over six years. I still can't believe what happened.

 

" Either there was a rogue scent of some kind on Mabel which switched

on Barney's deepest instincts, or it could have been jealousy - I was

just stroking Mabel and saying what a nice little bear she was. "

 

The attraction said Barney's future with them was " uncertain " .