IT strikes without warning and has left a community scared to walk the streets.

A vicious pig that has so far attacked four people in less than a week is on the loose.

In the worst incident, the animal forced a horse to throw off its rider and savaged her, as reported in yesterday's Daily Echo.

But it has also targeted other people living in a quiet Hampshire backwater.

It has mauled the legs of one resident, bitten through the umbrella of another and chased two dog walkers and their pets.

Now villagers in the New Forest village of Bartley have called for the pig to be locked up before someone is seriously injured.

The ancient guardians of the forest, The Verderers, with the help of the Daily Echo which tracked down the porker, have promised to have it removed.

Yesterday the Daily Echo told how 51-year-old Carolyn Robinson had fallen victim to the pig when it scared her horse into throwing her before charging at her.

The pig then backed her into a hedge before trying to bite chunks out of her legs until it was scared off by a second dog walker and Mrs Robinson's 18-year-old daughter Charlotte.

Others residents say the pig has also threatened them and are now calling for the animal to be caged.

One of those is Toni Knapp, 35, who lives on Brockishill Road and works in the Fourways Store.

She said: "It's just vicious. It attacked me last week as I was on my way back to the shop from my home.

"I could see it walking towards me and it just had this determined and demonic look in its eye, then it charged at me.

"I tried to fight it off with my umbrella, but it just bit through the metal spokes and kept on coming, snarling at me.

"I started running and made it over the cattle grid, but even then it tried to get round the fence post as though it didn't want to give up.

"It's an evil grumpy thing and if it was to charge at a child then there could be a really serious injury. It's got to go."

The creature is one of 250 sows turned out on to common land in the New Forest each autumn by local farmers.

Daily Echo reporter Chris Semple went out to the woods to track down the angry swine and found it still hanging around the site of its latest attack, close to the village centre under the shelter of several oak trees.

He said: "It's definitely the biggest pig I've seen in the forest so far and you can understand why people would be frightened of it.

"Though all the pigs released by local farmers and Commoners are females, you don't realise until you get up close to them that they still have massive teeth which could cause someone serious injuries - especially a child."

A spokesman for The Verderers said they will now be getting hold of the owner to have the pig removed immediately - something they hoped would be done by last night.

The spokes-man added: "The last thing we want is for a pig or any other animal to be injuring walkers or anyone else in the Forest.

"Though thankfully such incidents are rare, they do have the potential to be nasty particularly if it was to attack a child or older person. It concerns us that the lady who was initially attacked didn't immediately get in contact with us, because we could have dealt with this problem earlier.

"We would certainly urge anyone else who experiences problems to call us as soon as they can."

Today those in the village said they were delighted to know the pig, which they have nicknamed Boar-dicea, will be removed so that they can walk safely through Bartley.