A DOG owner claims his wife was left in tears on holiday nearly 3,000 miles from home because a kennels operator threatened to have their beloved pet destroyed.

Mark Cairns and wife Catherine were settling into a two-week break in Marmaris when they say dog carer Moira McLellan told them she would have their husky 'Storm' put down.

The Inverkip couple allege she made the comment after they'd been told by friends that Storm had been spotted running loose along Cloch Road in Gourock.

Mr Cairns said: "Fortunately someone in a car had stopped and got hold of him and took him back to the kennels.

"I asked Moira about what had happened and she claimed Storm had attacked other dogs and her.

"That dog has never attacked anyone or anything in his life."

Mr Cairns added: "I asked where she was that someone else had to find the dog and bring him back.

"I said I wasn't happy and she told me to come and get the dog and that she didn't need my business.

"She told me if I didn't come and get him she was going to take him to the vet and have him destroyed.

"I told her that the dog had better not be harmed and I would get my son to collect him."

Mr Cairns says he'd used Ms McLellan's Coastal Lodge kennels for the last three years without incident.

He said: "I gave her my bank details and asked for the £375 I'd paid her to be transferred over.

"She sent me a message saying she'd bring the money to my house and post it through the letterbox.

"I told her under no circumstances to do that as she'd need proof of repayment for herself.

"But she came to the house, videoed the street, the car reg numbers, the house, counting the money and she put it through the letterbox."

Mr Cairns added: "With the carry on with the dog running loose, there was a good chance he could have got killed that day.

"I was absolutely raging, I was sitting at the pool at the time and my language was pretty blue.

"My wife was crying, she was wanting to come home.

"Once we knew Storm was safe she settled down but it did put a dampener on the whole holiday."

Mr Cairns added: "I always thought that Moira would look after the dog.

"One of the reasons I put Storm back there was because he was so friendly with her dogs she didn't put him in the kennel at night, she took him in the house.

"My wife says now it's put her off going on holiday, she's talking about buying a camper van and then we can take the dog with us."

Ms McLellan refused to respond to the allegations when the Telegraph contacted her.

She said: "There is more to this story and I refuse, absolutely refuse, to give you guys an inch."

Ms McLellan said the matter was part of an ongoing police investigation and referred the Telegraph to them.

Asked what stage enquiries were at, she said: "It's none of your business.

"I don't want it printed, I don't need to give you my side of the story."

The Telegraph has contacted Police Scotland to ask them if they are investigating the matter.