National Trust responds to lady ‘thrown in air’ by cow with ‘metre-long’ horns

The National Trust has issued a statement after a woman was flung into the air by an aggressive Highland cow on its land.

Lanette Wiltshire, 50, experienced the terror on a family outing to Cobham Wood in Kent, where she encountered a herd of six bovine beasts. The Greenhithe mum-of-four recounted her terrifying encounter: “They were huge, and their horns were at least a metre long on each side.”

Voicing her initial apprehension, Mrs Wiltshire explained, “I did not want to walk past these cows, but my sister advised me they are friendly as they would not be able to roam free with the public around if they were dangerous.”

Despite her misgivings, she recalled saying, “I was not convinced and said we should go back the other way. I wish I had taken my own advice.”

Describing the harrowing moment, she said, “This cow just started walking closer and closer to me. I was scared that if I ran it would charge, so I stayed calm and stood my ground.”

Tragically, her fears materialised as she detailed, “As it moved closer, I knew it was going to end horribly, it came up to me, bent down its head and flung me about two foot in the air.”

She shockingly revealed, “It made a hole in my trousers and my underwear. I was impaled on its horn.”

Despite the severity of the ordeal, she mentioned, “Because we were all in shock, the only thing we could do is laugh.”

Reflecting on her luck, Mrs Wiltshire stated, “The power of this thing was unbelievable. I think it is a miracle that I got up and walked away with just those bruises.”

Devastated by the event, the stay-at-home mum shared that she still cant shake off the experience, suffering from recurring nightmares of another attack from the bovine brute.

Shocking pictures reveal the extensive bruising on a woman’s body after she was gored by a cow while out walking.

The bewildered family can’t fathom why the bovine targeted Mrs Wiltshire, though she wonders if her red lipstick may have provoked it.

As she looks back on the terrifying ordeal, her main worry is what might have happened had her Alzheimer’s-afflicted mother been the victim instead.

In an account of the traumatic experience, Mrs Wiltshire said: “It was horrific. That horn could have gone through my leg.”

Her concern extended to her elderly mum, with her musing: “I was really worried about my mum, because if it had happened to her, it would have killed her.”

She also pondered the dreadful possibility of children being in harm’s way: “There was a mum with her two young children there, thankfully they did not see what had happened as they went another way, but what if it had been a child? “.

Mrs Wiltshire is now lobbying for the National Trust to implement a fence separating walkers from the cattle to prevent further injuries.

Despite the attack, she acknowledged the beauty of the beasts, remarking that they were freely wandering without any clear signage about their presence.

Reflecting on the lack of warning, Mrs Wiltshire explained: “We have never been there before and had no idea that Highland cows are allowed to roam free around the woods and did not see any warning signs until we walked out of the woods where there was a tiny sign advising about the cows.”

Had she known about the unhindered cows, she claimed she would have chosen a different path: “If I had known the cows were there I would not have walked through. It is not the cow’s fault – [it] was just defending [it’s] territory.”

“You wouldn’t have thought that these animals would be allowed to be in a public place if they are going to be like that.”

“I don’t want the same thing to happen to someone else, they should be behind a fence.”

A spokesperson for the National Trust expressed their concern: “We were extremely concerned to hear that an individual was involved in an incident concerning cattle grazed on our land, reported to us on 15 October.”

“We have been in touch with the individual concerned, and our ranger team are assessing the site with our grazier and expert advisors including the existing signage in place to alert visitors to the presence of cattle.”

“We have a good working relationship with our grazier and we continue to work together to ensure that site safety is monitored. We would like to reassure all visitors that we regularly review grazing arrangements and their impact on visitor safety. If anyone would like to discuss any concerns, we are happy for people to get in touch with us directly.”