POLICE marksmen shot dead a cow claiming it posed "a danger to the public".

They said the animal was acting in a very aggressive manner after it escaped onto a busy road.

A motorist spotted the cow on the A9 near Dunblane at around 8.30am this morning and raised the alarm.

A group of people tried to capture the beast, which was being taken to an agricultural show.

But it jumped the barrier of the A9 and made its way into a nearby garden where it was contained.

The area was cordoned off and armed police and a vet went to the scene, but the animal could not be calmed down and had to be destroyed.

Superintendent Davie Flynn said: The animal was loose and was acting in a very aggressive manner.

There was a risk that a member of the public could have been seriously hurt.

After several attempts by the owner to calm the animal down, it jumped into nearby gardens in Montrose Way.

We were left with no option but to humanely destroy the animal. At all times the safety of the public was out priority.