Dog attack on the Heath

Published: 11 November, 2010

• I AM a runner and frequently run through the Heath. 

I was running there on Sunday around 3:30pm, a time when the park was full of walkers and small children. As I was running down from the Spaniard’s Inn entrance towards the West Meadow I was chased by a Border Collie that was not on a leash. I noticed that it had been fighting with other dogs and then it started after me. I am a dog lover and initially wasn’t too alarmed – so you can imagine my surprise when the thing jumped up and bit me on the leg and wouldn’t let go. A few kind people stopped to offer help. I was pretty shaken and didn’t immediately notice that it was quite a serious bite – the dog tore through my running tights, punctured the skin and I now have a deep jaw-shaped laceration and bruising.

What I was most concerned with was that the owner was nowhere to be found – he or she was some way off down another path and was oblivious to what was going on. The owner didn’t seem to know or care that the dog was attacking people and animals in the park. One of the men in the park shouted at the owner to control the dog but to this day I don’t know if they are aware of what happened.

I wouldn’t normally write in about something like this but I am concerned that this dog is off-leash, dangerous and the owner is not aware of this attack which, I understand, could be grounds for prosecution. I can cope with the distress, expense and inconvenience of it but I hate to think what would have happened if the dog had gone after one of the many small children in the area at the time.

ANASTASIA NICHOLAS
Horseferry Road, SW1