Strictly Come Dancing star Natasha Kaplinsky has always been a huge animal lover, basing herself in the Sussex countryside with a mammoth total of 47 animals. However she was in for a shock recently when her much-loved dog Dot picked a savage fight with another canine and she got caught in the crossfire.
Rushing to extricate her Coton de Tulear Dot from a fight with a Tibetan Terrier by the name of Molly, Natasha landed herself with a bite.
She revealed to the Daily Mail that as she’d separated them, explaining: “Dot bit me by mistake”.
Natasha was rushed to a Haywards Heath hospital, where she received a precautionary tetanus jab and had her arm put into a sling.
The traumatised ITV presenter subsequently posted photos to Instagram after her hospital visit, showcasing her bandaged hand and plaster-laden fingers.
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However the TV host, who loves the rustic life with her animals when not on set, still declares with pride that she’s a veritable “Doctor Doolittle” who could never be without her dogs.
With such a busy household, it’s little wonder that the dogs’ antics can get a little out of control at times.
There are also cats, chickens, alpacas, sheep and even a cow – and Natasha loves to balance a showbiz lifestyle with a simple life in the country, declaring that her ideal day begins in wellies and ends in stilettos.
On the glitzier side of her life, she managed to dance her way to the coveted Strictly Glitterball trophy 17 years ago, with partner Brendan Cole.
Then in 2007, she was recruited as part of the mammoth relaunch of Channel 5, which saw her land the biggest fee ever awarded to a newsreader in British history.
After hosting Five News for three weeks, she then switched over to ITV.
On the personal side of life, she married husband Justin after being connected for a blind date – and a year after her Strictly win, the pair were married.
Natasha, who has struggled through miscarriage heartbreaks in her quest to start a family, was finally able to successfully give birth to two children, which completed their brood.
The pair remain loved up, although Natasha has jokingly ribbed his dancing skills, joking to Yahoo: “It’s very different dancing with a drunken husband to a world class professional!”
