Dog walker ‘may lose her arm’ after horror attack by family pet
Mother played dead after rescue bulldog mauled her
A PROFESSIONAL dog walker may lose the use of both arms after being mauled by her own bulldog. Zoologist Emma Taylor was walking in secluded woodland when American bulldog Maya turned on her.
The mother of one screamed for help but there was no one nearby to come to her aid.
Using her skill as an animal expert she played dead while she dialled 999 with her free hand, a close friend said.
Police armed with riot shields wrestled Maya away and bundled Miss Taylor, 29, into the back of a van.
Miss Taylor, of Dumbarton, underwent emergency surgery at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, where doctors feared she could lose mobility in both arms and even lose her right arm.
The experienced animal behaviourist, who helped Edinburgh Zoo with its giant panda conservation project, had fostered Maya six weeks earlier. Friends said the bulldog had been on a lead when the horror attack happened at lunchtime on Easter Monday as Miss Taylor walked a group of dogs by the Forth and Clyde Canal in Clydebank, Dunbartonshire.
A source close to the family said: ‘The dog was going to kill Emma – if it was a child they would have been dead.
‘Maya seemed to be going in for the kill. Emma lay on the ground and played dead and reached for her phone with her left hand to call for help.
‘She is an animal behaviourist, she knows about dogs.
‘Maya had been spayed about two weeks before and her behaviour just changed. They never had any problems with her before.’
The source added: ‘Emma took her in as she fosters dogs, but Maya got on with their other dog, Caspar, so they decided to keep her. Maya was always so docile before.’
Miss Taylor, who runs the School of Walk dog walking service, was eventually moved out of intensive care and last night police confirmed that she had been allowed home.
A family source said: ‘Surgeons have had to operate on her right arm. Doctors have said she is going to lose some of the function in her left arm as well. She must have been trying to fight Maya off.
‘We are waiting to hear what the prognosis will be.’
Miss Taylor’s partner Steven Burton, 32, with whom she has a toddler son, is said to be distraught. He confirmed the attack but said: ‘At the moment I don’t want to speak to anybody about it.’
Friends are raising money for Miss Taylor in a bid to cover rehabilitation costs.
They said the dog had been put down, but police would not confirm this.
‘Maya seemed to be going in for the kill’