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A woman who was hit by a horse while walking on a Dunedin beach says tighter controls are needed about horses on beaches.
However, the owner of the horse says the crash could not have been prevented and was not something that happened often.
Nurse Sue Roker said she was walking along Ocean View Beach on Sunday afternoon with her husband and two dogs when a herd of about eight horses approached.
"It was like being in the middle of the Wingatui racecourse.
"I heard them coming from behind me, but there was nowhere to go."
Her husband moved out of the way, but as she went to grab one of her dogs she was knocked to the ground, she said.
"I was shaken and crying. It was very scary."
She spent the afternoon at the urgent doctors clinic as she had a sore head, neck and shoulder on her right side, but was still waiting for confirmation of her injury.
"I will be off work until Wednesday."
Silver Stream Horses owner and operator Barbara Verlinden said a group of five young girls, including her 12-year-old daughter, were having a riding lesson on the beach when the herd was spooked by an open umbrella flying about.
Some of the girls came off the startled horses, although her daughter managed to stay on hers, which was the animal that ran into Mrs Roker.
The incident was an unfortunate situation that no-one could have controlled, she said.
"She [Mrs Roker] stepped out in front of the horses instead of staying still so there wasn’t a way to avoid hitting her.
"It’s not the girls' fault, they did their very best to try to get their horses to slow down."
Mrs Roker said she would now be wary at the beach.
"I don’t want this to happen to anyone else.
"I think there does need to be conditions around having horses on the beach. They do the same for dogs."
Mrs Roker said she would be getting in touch with the Dunedin City Council about the incident.
Ms Verlinden said the girls were familiar with the horses, which were well-trained and usually placid.
The Dunedin City Council’s Reserves and Beaches Bylaw 2017 permits people to ride on most Dunedin beaches, including Ocean View Beach.