A dog had to undergo a four-hour operation after slipping and impaling itself on a "dangerous" council fence.
Nine-year-old lurcher Jess was left with serious injuries after slipping down a bank and falling onto the spikes in Aberdare on Tuesday.
Jess's owner Savanagh Pyer said her pet had to undergo a four-hour operation to cut away, clean and sew up the wound on her back.
Her family must now wait five days to see if any infections have set in, which could prove deadly for the elderly pet.
Savanagh, 24, said: "Jess went for a walk with my brother.
"She went to go next to the path and as she slipped she caught her back when she fell down the bank.
"My brother didn't have his phone so there were two teenagers who loaned him their phone to call to get both of them picked up.
"Her back was completely exposed, we had to pull the flap [of skin] back in place."
Warning: graphic images below
The fence, by Penydarran Tramroad Footbridge, was installed by Rhondda Cynon Taf Council to stop members of the public gaining access to the area.
Savanagh, from Aberdare, said: "Today she's awful, she can't move, she couldn't walk to the car.
"[Vets] have done everything they can but we won't know until five days if infection will set in and if it does we will have to put her down. It's very touch and go.
"It's a fairly big operation for such an old dog. She's brilliant, she goes out for long walks every single day. She's the most placid, calm dog, she wouldn't hurt a fly."
Savanagh, who owns two others dogs, now wants to warn others of the dangers of the fence near the walking path on the A4059 between Tesco and Llywcoed roundabout.
She said: "They are razor sharp. There are two little horses right by there and everyone takes their kids to feed them. It's so easy for any kids to slip and grab them and there's no warning signs at all."
A spokesman for Rhondda Cynon Taf Council said: "The Council was saddened to hear about a recent injury sustained by a dog, near to Penydarran Tramroad Footbridge.
"The fence was recently installed to prevent members of the public gaining access to a dangerous structure.
"Whilst the Council believes that the fence does not put any members of the public at risk, due to it being set back off the footpath and spanning over a river bank, the Council is now looking at what possible measures can be taken, to prevent dogs and other animals attempting to crawl beneath the palisade fencing."
