Horrifying moment rampant cow tramples woman, 20, and kicks her in the face in attack that leaves her needing plastic surgery

Horrifying footage shows a woman being trampled by a rampant cow, leaving her needing plastic surgery.

Darcie Rowlandson, 20, was bringing dairy cows in from the fields ahead of a storm while working as a farming assistant when one of them refused to follow.

The 62st cow turned in the opposite direction to where Ms Rowlandson, from Preston, Lancashire, wanted it to go, accidentally knocking her to the ground in the process.

Video footage shows how the cow tried to make a hasty retreat away from Ms Rowlandson by jumping over her – only to accidentally boot her in the face as she sits up.

Describing the incident, Ms Rowlandson said: ‘When the accident happened, I wanted to bring two cows in from the field because there was supposed to be the first big storm of the year.

‘They’d been out for summer and I didn’t want them outside getting stressed in the thunder and lightning.

‘I tried to entice them with food, but that wasn’t working. Then I tried bringing them in on a halter.

‘As I was trying to bring her in, her head went one way and I lost my balance and fell the other way.

‘She wasn’t being nasty, it was just an accident. I held onto the rope, because you do naturally, and as I ended up on the floor she got spooked and jumped over my face.

‘As she did that and I sat up, that’s where she just caught my face with a hoof.

‘It cut my lip and made it wider and also caught my eyes. I looked like a Halloween mask with all those stitches in.’

Photos show Ms Rowlandson’s bloodied face, split lip and closed eye minutes later, before being rushed to Royal Preston Hospital in Preston, Lancashire, by her father Denis Rowlandson.

Doctors gave her antibiotics and fluids before she underwent plastic surgery to stitch up her wounds. 

After learning about medical tattooing, often used on patients who’ve had breast reconstruction or to camouflage scars, Ms Rowlandson decided to qualify in it herself.

Now, Ms Rowlandson claims the horror injury on September 27th 2023 was ‘meant to be’ as it led her down the path of launching her own business As Before and helping others.

Ms Rowlandson said: ‘I think everything happens for a reason. I’m very optimistic.

‘It was probably meant to be that it did happen – I would never have known about medical tattooing if it hadn’t.

Animal lover Ms Rowlandson who now offers 3D nipple and areola tattoos to cancer and burns victims for free, said she was inspired to switch careers after her accident.

Ms Rowlandson said: ‘I was inspired to do medical tattooing after learning about it when my scar was still really red a couple of months later.

‘I asked a semi-permanent make-up artist about it and she told me to follow someone on Instagram.

‘I decided if it didn’t fade I’d get it done. Even though my scarring is quite minimal now I kept following her and then realised she did training courses too.

‘I remember thinking “this is amazing, I need to do this”.

‘I completed my training in June 2024 and set up a business called As Before, and work in Wilmslow and Blackpool.

‘I work with all kinds of people including women and men who’ve gone through breast cancer, women who’ve had a breast reduction and given them brand new colour-matched nipples.

‘It’s really rewarding doing the work I do.’