'Three or four were jumping up at me' - Woman required surgery after alleged bloodhound attack

Maddie Dunning said she spent days in hospital and had to take two weeks off work following the incident. Credit: Media Wales

Warning - this article contains images some may find upsetting.

A woman spent days in hospital following what she said was an attack by a group of bloodhounds taking part in a hunt.

Maddie Dunning, 18, said she and her puppy were both injured during the incident on the Black Mountain in Bannau Brycheiniog in October.

She also had to take two weeks off work and required surgery.

Ms Dunning, from Portsmouth, was in Llanelli to visit her brother and was walking near Ammanford with her 17-week-old puppy Zena when she said the dogs started running towards them.

Ms Dunning said she was so focused on protecting her dog during the incident, she only noticed she was injured afterwards. Credit: Media Wales

She said: “I was with my brother and sister before I got lost on the mountain with Zena. Just before we got to the mountain these two bloodhounds came and sniffed me and I found them to be friendly and thought little of it. I am a dog-lover and so my guard was down. “After getting lost on the mountain I saw 15 horses in the distance and people dressed in smart clothing on the horses. Following them were around ten bloodhounds. Then one of the dogs started bolting towards me.

She continued: "One dog jumped on Zena while around three or four were jumping up at me too. I lost Zena from my grip and one of the dogs began dragging her across the field. I then tried to get the dog away from Zena and it bit my hand.

"Then the hunters came on their horses and started whipping the dogs to get them away from us. It felt like it went on for ages but it probably lasted for around three to four minutes.”

The 18-year-old retail worker added: “I was supposed to leave to go back home on that Sunday but I ended up staying all week because I had to go to the hospital for a few days where I had surgery.

“I had to have two weeks off work. Zena was also in the vet's for four days. She had punctures to the stomach and her stomach was drooping down to the floor. She had bite marks on her paw, ears and legs too."

Zena, who was 17-weeks-old at the time of incident, spent four days at the vets. Credit: Media Wales

Ms Dunning said she was so focused on protecting her dog she "didn’t realise much at the time, but afterwards I realised how bad my injuries were. I had bite marks all over my hands and a lot of bruises.”

The incident is alleged to have involved dogs from the Banwen Miners' Bloodhounds hunt group. It trains dogs to chase human runners instead of animals.

The group has denied Ms Dunning's injuries were caused by their dogs and said they are "not aggressive in any way."

A spokesman for the hunting group claimed Ms Dunning's account is inaccurate, saying the 18-year-old had two dogs off the lead and "our whipper-in actually witnessed her own dog biting [her] as she lifted it."

The spokesman added: “When I was called to the scene I arranged for everybody to be given a lift off the mountain and I then arranged transport for Ms Dunning and her dog to see a veterinary surgeon. Ms Dunning was concerned about her dog and did not complain to me of any injury to herself, nor did I see any injury. “I rang the vet an hour later and asked if Ms Dunning had transport home and they told me she had a lift. A text conversation occurred a few days later between Mr Clive Rees, the hunt chairman, and Ms Dunning and there were messages back and forth between them."

The hunting group alleged to be involved in the incident said Ms Dunning had been bitten by her own as she picked her up. Credit: Media Wales

The hunt group agreed to pay Ms Dunning £400 over the incident as a gesture of goodwill and said it was not an admittance of liability.

The hunt group also paid for the £700 vet fee for Ms Dunning’s dog as a “final settlement."

Ms Dunning responded: "It is incorrect to say there was another dog with me and Zena on the mountain during the incident. It was me and my puppy. I was not in a field with two dogs off the lead.

"I was on public land with Zena and the hunt group's dogs ran to me and Zena. It's shocking to hear that the hunt group are claiming Zena bit me when I picked her up. That didn't happen.She added: "Yes, Zena was off the lead but she was right next to me and she was literally at my feet the whole time when the dogs began approaching us because she was so scared.

"The whole incident has scared me because thinking back, I think it could have been much worse. This happened to me on public land and I wanted to speak about it to make people aware of what could happen in that area.”

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