A couple have spoken for the first time of the crippling injuries sustained by their two dogs which were electrocuted on Castle Hill.

Pedigree labradors Chester and Monty were left partially paralysed and writhing in agony after being struck down near the landmark Victoria Tower.

The dogs – two-year-old brothers – were just a few feet apart on the grass when they were apparently hit by a bolt of electricity from underground.

Chester almost died and both dogs needed surgery on fractured limbs.

Vets say the electric shock was so severe the spasm caused the bones to crack and ligaments to be ripped off.

Warning: Some people will find some of these pictures of the dogs' injuries upsetting

The dogs’ owners Julie and Matt Bulmer, of Almondbury, feared they would lose Chester but now, more than a week later, the animals are recovering at home.

Julie said: “It has been an awful experience and we just couldn’t believe what happened. It’s not something you expect when you take your dogs for a walk, particularly somewhere like Castle Hill.”

Matt, 41, a self-employed electrician, and Julie, 51, a community nurse, have been left with a vet’s bill of almost £2,700.

A local dog charity, which wanted to remain anonymous, gave a donation of £700 but the couple have paid the rest with the help of family and friends. The couple did not have pet insurance.

Matt was walking Chester and Monty near Victoria Tower at 10.30am on Wednesday, January 21 when the animals were struck.

Matt was reading a notice on the tower door and his dogs were a short distance behind him on the grass.

He told how the dogs let out an “awful shriek” and were left stricken and barely conscious.

Matt phoned his wife, who was in Slaithwaite, and carried the dogs as far as Ashes Lane where Julie picked them up and rushed them to Donaldson’s Vets at Aspley.

Northern Powergrid checked the power supply and switched off electricity to the tower pending a Kirklees Council investigation.

Chester’s condition was “touch and go” and Julie said the x-ray looked like his leg had been “hit sideways with a sledgehammer.”

When his condition improved he underwent surgery and had a plate inserted to fuse his dislocated carpus, or wrist joint. All the ligaments were detached from the bone and there were scorch marks all the way up his leg.

It was hoped Monty wouldn’t need an operation on two elbow fractures but vets decided surgery was the best option. The joint was repaired with a screw, two pins and a wire.

A x-ray image showing Monty's pinned and screwed elbow joint

Both dogs will need on-going treatment and physio. Chester could be left with a permanent limp while Monty’s repaired joint will be prone to arthritis.

“The dogs have been through an horrendous ordeal,” said Julie.

“The spasm ripped the muscles away from the bone. It’s no wonder they were screaming in pain.

“Both Chester and Monty will need more treatment but we are just glad they are still with us.”

Donaldson’s director Martin Paterson, who treated the dogs with fellow vet Chris Murphy, said he had only seen electrocution in cattle that had bitten into electric cable and never in domestic dogs.

He described the case was “very unusual” and added: “When the dogs came in to us they were very badly shocked.

“One dog had a dislocated carpus and the strength of the muscle spasm had literally torn the bone apart which was a pretty dramatic injury.

“The second dog’s elbow injury was the result of the joint jerking straight and over-straightening. Both were nasty injuries and we have done as much as we can to salvage the joints.”

Mr Paterson added: “In our opinion the injuries are consistent with electrocution with the severity of the spasm and because the injuries were sustained by both dogs in the same place simultaneously.”

Julie said it was possible that a lightning strike had caused the electrocution. “Though we didn’t see any lightning we have been told if there had been a strike on a conductor the electricity would be dispersed through a cable underground.

“If the cable was broken that could explain what happened.”

The drama happened the day after Victoria Tower was illuminated as part of UNESCO’s International Year of Light and Lighting Technologies.

Organiser James Bawn said all his equipment had been removed the previous night.

A Kirklees Council spokesperson said: “A full investigation into the incident is taking place, and until the investigation is complete the family have been informed that they will need to cover any vet costs.

"If the council are found to be liable the family would be entitled to make a claim to recoup their costs.

"The council have been in contact with the family to pass on our sympathy for the dogs, and to ensure they were fully aware of the situation so as not to add any additional distress to what has been a difficult and upsetting time for them.

"Once the investigation is complete we will provide our findings direct to the family.”