A horse rider has spoken out after a dog allegedly jumped at her horse and chased it through a popular Wiltshire woodland, leaving her at risk of being thrown off.
The incident happened in West Woods, near Lockeridge, where the woman was riding her mare when a black Labrador-type dog reportedly lunged towards the animal.
According to the rider, the dog had been lying down some distance ahead of its owner before suddenly jumping towards the horse’s head as they passed.
The horse became frightened, spun around and began bucking before attempting to run away, with the dog continuing to chase it.
The woman said her mare was normally comfortable around dogs, including those that were not particularly well-behaved, but described this encounter as extreme.
When she confronted the dog’s owner about what had happened, she claims he responded with a foul-mouthed insult and told her that her horse should be shot.
The equestrian said she later encountered the man again in the woodland car park, where she managed to record his vehicle registration number.
She stressed that she did not blame the dog, which she believed had been playing, but was concerned about the owner’s apparent failure to control it.
The rider believes the incident could have resulted in serious injuries, particularly if the dog had approached a horse less accustomed to being around dogs.
Under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, a dog can be considered dangerously out of control if there are grounds for reasonable apprehension that it will injure a person, whether or not an injury actually occurs.
However, whether the circumstances of this particular incident meet that legal threshold would depend on the evidence and any assessment by police.
There are also suggestions that signage at West Woods car park asks visitors to keep dogs on leads, although the precise wording and any applicable restrictions have not been independently verified.
It is not known whether the incident has been formally reported to Wiltshire Police.
