A WOMAN was injured after she was attacked by two dogs while out on a run in the Stockbridge countryside.

During one of her weekly rural runs Karen Ashton was approached by a couple and their four dogs on a track in the woods between the B3049 and Somborne Park Road.

Walking towards Karen the couple’s dogs were off their leads but within a matter of seconds two of the animals had jumped on the 58-year-old.

“They just suddenly went berserk,” she said. “The black dog jumped up against me, snarling, almost knocking me off my feet whilst the white dog lunged up and again, and bit me twice on the left arm.

“The first bite was on my forearm and the second on my elbow joint, which was extremely painful.

“The two other smaller dogs yapped ferociously round my ankles.”

The horticulturalist believes that the two dogs which attacked her were a mountain dog-type, a large black possibly a Labrador cross, while the smaller dogs appeared to be a spaniel type and a Jack Russell.

“They went into a frenzy, if they would have knocked me over I would have been in more trouble.”

Karen said that she tried to keep control of the situation but to no avail as the dogs continued to bark and snarl.

“Although the couple shouted at the dogs, they were completely ignored and the dogs were totally out of control, went into "pack mode" and were extremely and dangerously aggressive.

“Luckily, I am not afraid of dogs as I have owned several, have worked with dogs in the past and also worked as a veterinary nurse.”

She added: “The couple apologised and I did say to them that they had absolutely no control of their dogs and that they should be on leads.

“It crossed my mind what might have happened had I had a small child with me, as they could quite easily have been badly mauled.”

Karen said that she was shaken and cross following the incident, but now remains concerned about the possibility of someone else or herself being attacked by the dogs and has contacted the police.

However, the police emailed Karen to say that they would not be investigating and closed the case.

“I thought that doesn’t seem fair. It appears to me that the police are happy to spend time and energy berating people for playing in their own gardens or sitting at a park bench, but when it comes to a serious attack, they do not wish to take any further action.”

To make matters worse Karen believes that the couple may have travelled to walk their dogs as she lives on the Heath House Shooting Estate and after an investigation by the estate manager the pair were not identified.