Coroner set to raise issue of regulation with home secretary after dog walker killed

A coroner has reportedly expressed concern over “the lack of regulation to control dogs” after professional dog walker Natasha Johnston’s death in Surrey in January.

Johnston had been walking eight dogs in Gravelly Hill, Caterham, when she was fatally attacked on 12 January 2023.

Senior Surrey coroner Richard Travers said the lack of regulation to control dogs was “a matter of concern” on a national level and he would be addressing a prevention of future deaths report to home secretary Yvette Cooper, the report suggest.

In his conclusion, Travers said Johnston was initially in control of the group of eight dogs she was walking but “it was readily apparent that control was lost with a tragic result”.