The Welwyn and Hatfield Times.
Exclusive by Steve Creswell
Thelma the pony has been attacked twice now.
A SHETLAND pony was left with life-threatening injuries following a savage night-time attack - possibly by a big cat.
The terrified animal, named Thelma, was found covered in dirt and blood by her owners at their isolated stable yard outside Northaw near Potters Bar.
Livery owner Sarah Beesley said she and her husband Alan had immediately called for a vet to treat the four-inch deep puncture wounds in the 200kg pony's neck.
A look-a-like of the beast
They also found large, cat-like prints in the mud nearby.
Sarah told the Potters Bar Edition Thelma had only just recovered from a similar attack before Christmas.
"We've got two horses and two Shetlands and it has gone for her both times as she's older and slower," she said.
"In both incidents she was dragged to the floor and the claw marks and puncture wounds on the neck went through to the muscle. A dog is unlikely to be able to do that."
She added: "There's no explanation other than a big cat. The vet said the scratches had caused an infection not typical of what a dog would do, more like a cat. But so many people don't believe these stories."
Sarah said she had not dared to leave the ponies alone in the field since the attack on March 20 and admitted feeling wary herself after dark.
"It does make you feel a little uncomfortable in the dark walking the animals," she said. "This has never happened in our area before."
Having seen a photo of the paw print, Danny Bamping, of the British Big Cats Society, said the imprint could definitely have been made by a large cat.
"It's big enough and the right shape but I couldn't say 100 per cent," he said.
"Potters Bar has been a hot spot for the last five or six years and has had lots of sightings reported."
He also said that sceptics were finally coming around to the idea that big cats could be roaming the countryside, especially following the UK's first Big Cat Conference last month.
We reported last summer that a big cat, dubbed the Beast of Brookmans Park, was on the prowl in Times Territory.
At the time professor Mac Johnston, of the Royal Veterinary College, said there had been many cases of people dumping dangerous animals in the countryside since the Dangerous Wild Animals Act came into force in 1976.
http://www.whtimes.co.uk/content/wh...ewswhtnew&itemid=WEED04 Apr 2006 15:11:05:377
Exclusive by Steve Creswell
Thelma the pony has been attacked twice now.
A SHETLAND pony was left with life-threatening injuries following a savage night-time attack - possibly by a big cat.
The terrified animal, named Thelma, was found covered in dirt and blood by her owners at their isolated stable yard outside Northaw near Potters Bar.
Livery owner Sarah Beesley said she and her husband Alan had immediately called for a vet to treat the four-inch deep puncture wounds in the 200kg pony's neck.
A look-a-like of the beast
They also found large, cat-like prints in the mud nearby.
Sarah told the Potters Bar Edition Thelma had only just recovered from a similar attack before Christmas.
"We've got two horses and two Shetlands and it has gone for her both times as she's older and slower," she said.
"In both incidents she was dragged to the floor and the claw marks and puncture wounds on the neck went through to the muscle. A dog is unlikely to be able to do that."
She added: "There's no explanation other than a big cat. The vet said the scratches had caused an infection not typical of what a dog would do, more like a cat. But so many people don't believe these stories."
Sarah said she had not dared to leave the ponies alone in the field since the attack on March 20 and admitted feeling wary herself after dark.
"It does make you feel a little uncomfortable in the dark walking the animals," she said. "This has never happened in our area before."
Having seen a photo of the paw print, Danny Bamping, of the British Big Cats Society, said the imprint could definitely have been made by a large cat.
"It's big enough and the right shape but I couldn't say 100 per cent," he said.
"Potters Bar has been a hot spot for the last five or six years and has had lots of sightings reported."
He also said that sceptics were finally coming around to the idea that big cats could be roaming the countryside, especially following the UK's first Big Cat Conference last month.
We reported last summer that a big cat, dubbed the Beast of Brookmans Park, was on the prowl in Times Territory.
At the time professor Mac Johnston, of the Royal Veterinary College, said there had been many cases of people dumping dangerous animals in the countryside since the Dangerous Wild Animals Act came into force in 1976.
http://www.whtimes.co.uk/content/wh...ewswhtnew&itemid=WEED04 Apr 2006 15:11:05:377
