A MAN will appear in court accused of allowing a dog to be dangerously out of control in public before being shot dead by police last month.

The elderly German Shepherd was shot on January 21 after officers were sent to Mainsforth Terrace, in Hartlepool, to try and calm the dog with members of the public advised to stay away from the scene for their own safety.

Throughout the operation Cleveland Police said they worked together with a number of veterinary professionals, the RSPCA and a rehoming charity, and added they 'exhausted all other options' before taking the decision to shoot the dog.

A spokesperson for Cleveland Police said: "A 22-year-old man from the Hartlepool area has been summonsed to court for having a dog dangerously out of control in a public place in connection with an incident involving a dog in Hartlepool on Sunday 21st January."

Cleveland Police were alerted about the dog tied to the post in Mainsforth Terrace, in Hartlepool, after being contacted by Hartlepool Borough Council just after 10am on the morning of January 21.

The force issued an appeal "as a matter of urgency" to trace the German Shepherd’s owner and asked anyone with information to contact them via emergency number 999.