A pastor claims to have solved the mystery of a bridge from which 50 dogs have jumped to their deaths.
Since the 1950s Overtoun Bridge in Dumbarton, Scotland has been known as the scene of bizarre animal tragedies.
Hundreds of canines have hurled themselves off the 15 metres structure into the gorge below/
Some local reports suggest up to 600 canines have plummeted off the bridge, although thankfully most have survived.
As the death toll continues to rise a Texan pastor living in a nearby manor has attempted to solve the mystery once and for all.
Bob Hill believes that the mutts are being sent into a frenzy by the smell of animals below the gorge.
Hull mum's fears for son, 11, who is bullied so badly he 'wants to kill himself'
“The dogs catch the scent of mink, pine martens or some other mammal and then they will jump up on the wall of the bridge,” Mr Hill told The New York Times.
“And because it’s tapered, they will just topple over.”
The pastor runs a local centre for women in crisis and, since moving into Overtoun House with his wife 20 years ago, has seen a number of dogs tumble onto the rocks below.
Others are not convinced by the small mammal theory however.
Woman, 22, killed lover in sex game then dismembered body 'in ritual'
Religion and philosophy teacher Paul Owens first came to the bridge 40 years ago and has spent more than a decade attempting to work outs its secret.
In his book 'The Baron of Rainbow Bridge'- which features two superimposed canines leaping off the structure as a top-hatted man looks on on its covert - Mr Owens argues ghosts are to blame.
Specifically The White Lady of Overtoun, the often-sighted ghost of a local woman who died in 1908 and never got over the death of her husband.
Disgraced police officer demanded money from hotels to give free advice about guns
Another man who has done a lot of research is David Sands.
The animal behaviourist ruled out the possibility that dogs were deliberately killing themselves, instead showing that long-nosed species were more easily drawn to animal scents below the bridge.
He theorized that the dogs’ limited perspective, their ignorance that the path changes from level ground to a bridge spanning a deep gorge and the smells wafting through the air probably enticed the dogs to jump.
