Benjie, a half cocker spaniel accused of biting a Chinese takeaway delivery man, narrowly escaped being put down at a court hearing in Dublin yesterday.
Judge Joseph Mathews said Benjie had been placed at the scene of the crime by two witnesses, Mr Willie Rooney, and his daughter, Catherine.
But Benjie's owner, Ms Avis Mullen, was equally adamant her pet had been securely locked up at home at the time he had been accused of sinking his teeth into Mr Laurence Ford's leg.
Mr Ford, a part-time delivery man for a Chinese restaurant, had sued Ms Mullen for up to £30,000 damages in the Dublin Circuit Civil Court.
Mr Ford said he was delivering food to the Rooney household at Market Green, Balbriggan, when he was bitten by the dog which the Rooneys identified as Benjie.
Ms Mullen said that she had been out of the house from 7 p.m. to 8.30 p.m. When she returned, Benjie was still locked up in the kitchen, she said. There was no way he could have escaped.
"In law, and in life, honest people have made mistakes and both sides cannot be right," Judge Mathews said, giving his ruling. "Mr Ford relies wholly on the evidence of the Rooneys to make his case, and on the balance of what is more probable, there isn't enough evidence to put Benjie in the dock and convict him."