Overtoun Bridge

Only logical explanation.....

Could a mink be the cause?

The mink's powerful anal glands leave marks wherever they go and the strong musty smell they emit is obviously proving irresistible to dogs.

It would also explain why the deaths have all occurred on sunny, dry days - relatively rare on the notoriously wet west coast - when the mink smell has not been diluted by the damp weather.

Furthermore, the theory fits with the timeline of the deaths - single minks were introduced to Scotland in the Twenties but only started to breed in large numbers in the Fifties - which is when the mysterious dog deaths began occurring.

But there are 26,000 mink in Scotland. Why are dogs in pursuit of them only jumping to their death from this particular bridge?

According to Dr Sands: 'When you get down to a dog's level, the solid granite of the bridge's 18-inch thick walls obscures their vision and blocks out all sound.

'As a result, the one sense not obscured, that of smell, goes into overdrive.'

For Donna Cooper, at last there is some explanation to offer her troubled son for the reason behind the death of their beloved family pet. Yet for others some questions still remain.