A dog-walker who “still has visions of three cows” after almost being trampled to death says she is “surprised” at the leniency of a farmer’s fine.
Former Army officer Janicke Tvedt said she thought she was going to die in the terrifying ordeal near Masham, in north Yorkshire, when the animals feared her labrador, Goose, 8, was a threat to their calves. The mum-of-two was left with seven broken ribs and needed part of her colon removed following the terrifying ordeal in July 2021, York Magistrates’ Court heard.
Farmer Martin Falshaw, 70, was fined after he admitted failing to take adequate precautions to separate the cattle from a public footpath. Ms Tvedt, who served in Bosnia and had recently been diagnosed with cancer, stumbled across the seemingly harmless 30-strong herd with her friend, David Hood, and her labrador.
She was left with serious injuries (Janicke Tvedt / SWNS)
Ms Tvedt pictured in hospital (Janicke Tvedt / SWNS)Within minutes, she had been pulled down and pinned against a fence as the animals viciously stamped on her body. There had been a cow and two calves initially before another three cows also began to trample on her.
She only managed to escape when her army training kicked in and she went into "survival mode". She climbed a tree, where she slipped in and out of consciousness, with Mr Hood holding on to her, before finally being airlifted to hospital. Even after reaching the welcome arms of medical teams, shocked Janicke still believed that she was going to die due to the severity of her excruciating injuries.
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Janicke was airlifted to hospital (Janicke Tvedt / SWNS)
She was left with seven broken ribs and heavy bruises among her injuries (Janicke Tvedt / SWNS)Ms Tvedt told the BBC after the hearing. "I still have visions of three cows' heads this close from me pinning me against the hedge. I've had the best part of two years in counselling to overcome the trauma. The injuries I have are permanent."
The prosecution reportedly said that 10 years earlier a trespasser had been chased by a cow but had managed to escape uninjured, while the defence argued that there had been no other incidents there in 25 years. The judge said: "You are a man of good character and you have voluntarily taken steps since the incident to put up fencing. But, just because nothing had happened before, it does not mean that there was no likelihood of something like that happening."
Janicke with her labrador Goose (Tom Maddick / SWNS)Falshaw was fined £770, along with a £190 victim surcharge and ordered to pay legal costs of £4,539.36. Following the court hearing Ms Tvedt told ITV she was “quite surprised” by the size of the fine but added: “The important thing is that the message is out there that cattle are not safe and I want to make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else."
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