Cows pursue dog walker into bog

A man and his dog had to be rescued from a bog in Devon after being chased by a herd of cows.

A police helicopter ferried firefighters to the mire to extricate Tony Maye, 45, who was clinging to a branch of a tree near Exeter Canal.

Mr Maye and his pet were "covered from head to toe in mud", said police.

The drama began when Mr Maye, from Paignton, Devon, took his dog for a walk in fields near the Double Locks hotel and the cows became "frisky".

I thought I was going to die Tony Maye

Mr Maye said: "We went through this gap and there were all these cows.

"One of them started being a bit frisky and began jumping up and down and the others followed.

"I thought I could wade into the river and get away from them.

"I hit the mud and the cows were still following so I went out even further. It was getting deeper and deeper."

He then realised he was in trouble and called for help.

"I thought I was going to die," he said.

The police helicopter was launched and spotted Mr Maye at 2126 BST on Thursday, waist-deep in mud and clinging to a tree.

Firefighters used specialist rescue equipment brought by helicopter from Plymouth, 40 miles away, to pull him and dog to safety.

Mr Maye, who was unhurt, lost a ring, his glasses and £250 in cash in the mire.