Larking around and taking selfies with a friend, this is Natasha Johnston, the dog walker who was trampled to death in Surrey last month.
The images come as those near the 28-year-old commemorated a ‘bubbly, beautiful’ female who enjoyed dogs and was experienced in managing them.
Jo Butchers, 34, a friend of Ms Johnston from her youth home of Ryde on the Isle of Wight, informed The Mail on Sunday: ‘Long countryside walks with the dogs were her thing. She did a lot of dog walking here, not as a professional but with her own dogs and those of friends.
‘Then she moved away and that became her job in London. She grew up with dogs, so she always loved them.’
Ms Johnston passed away from several bites to the neck, consisting of one that perforated her jugular vein, after the animals assaulted her in Caterham on January 12. An inquest is because of begin on June 29.
At the time, the regional Tandridge council said she was not certified to stroll dogs in the district. But Ms Butchers firmly insisted that Ms Johnston, who resided in Croydon, South London, was a skilled specialist who had actually got her licence.
She included that when she heard the news of her friend’s death she didn’t think it ‘because she was great with the dogs’.
Another friend informed the MoS: ‘She was definitely not new to dogs – the complete opposite. She always loved them and absolutely adored her own, talking about them all the time. She seemed really happy being a dog walker in London, she used to put videos on her Snapchat of the dogs. So it’s paradoxical the manner in which she was killed, bless her.’
Before transferring to London, Ms Johnston resided in Ryde with her bro and 2 dogs.
The mom of one youth friend said: ‘We’re definitely ravaged. She was so caring, a lovely lady inside and out.
‘She was always bubbly when she used to come to meet my girl. They used to go out together and enjoy their lives as young teenagers.
‘She’s going to be sorely missed out on. I understand there will be a great deal of individuals increasing to her funeral service.’
She went to state school and formed a tight group of buddies. While completing college Ms Johnston began working part-time as a carer, which ended up being a full-time task till she left the island around 2017. The function at the Bluebird Care firm included going to elderly and susceptible individuals at home.
One previous coworker said: ‘She was really good at her job, she made it fun for the elderly and made them feel young again. We had lots of laughs together. Obviously dogs were her passion, she always wanted to work with animals, but in the care industry she was just that – caring.’
One coworker remembered her love of dancing. ‘She would dance at every opportunity. If she was upset, she’d dance it off. If somebody required comforting, she’d have a dance, she didn’t care a jot.’
It has actually been reported that Ms Johnston formerly owned a Staffordshire bull terrier and had actually taken in a rescue dog. In 2018 she was visualized snuggling a family dog looking like a Staffie, called Aurora.
It is not understood the number of dogs Ms Johnston was walking when she was assaulted. Eight dogs were taken by the cops, triggering speculation she had actually broken the district’s limitation of walking 6 at the same time. None were prohibited types, with 2 dachshunds and an 11-stone Leonberger called Shiva amongst them. They stay in kennels for forensic tests and might be held for a year.
Tandridge council says is thinking about prepare for certified expert dog walkers to use armbands to assure worried homeowners.
