Woman says seagull tried to snatch her dog

Gloucester woman Angela Thompson, 52, says a seagull attempted to snatch one of her Yorkshire terriers. She was walking her pets in Quedgeley when the winged predator struck on Thursday. She said the bird started circling and swooping above her head before she took refuge in the nearby McDonald's drive-through restaurant.



Believing the coast was clear, she set out again for home but the trio were immediately ambushed by the winged menace, which landed on 14-year-old Micky. "The gull swept down from behind me and then circled around before coming down again and tried to take my dog," she said. "There was a scuffle and I was screaming and flailing my handbag at it then I just ran with them down the road.

"I just had that feeling it was going to come back. It was horrifying, a really terrifying experience." She managed to flee the scene and take refuge in a nearby bus shelter before safely getting her pets home. "It was huge. I just didn't understand why it was trying to take something so big," she said. Gull numbers are considered a big problem in Gloucester and many are having chicks.



Dave Painter, reserve manager at Slimbridge Wildfowl and Wetlands Centre, said: "The bird was likely protecting a perceived threat to its young but was rare they would physically attack people or dogs. Entering a colony of gulls can be quite dangerous as they could strike you as they are quite big birds. They are serious predators, not just scavengers and are quite capable of hunting small animals."