An increasing number of dog-owners in rural Bedfordshire are reporting attacks by Chinese water deer, whose ancestors escaped Woburn Safari Park.Although the deer are less than 2ft tall and weigh a maximum of 31lb, the males have a secret weapon - downward-pointing fangs which can grow more than 3in long.
The Chinese water deer population had sprung up since they began to escape in the 1920s and 1930s. They breed throughout the year and are quite a menace. You don't normally see them except at dusk because they lie down during day as their natural coloring camouflages them in the long grass.
The UK is now estimated to be home to a quarter of the world's Chinese water deer population.Latest victim was Perdita, a six-year-old Jack Russell out for a walk with Georgina Robey, 12, and her ten year old brother Daniel. Perdita suffered cuts on her back, neck and both sides of her stomach after an encounter with a
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