A Melbourne personal trainer has undergone emergency surgery after she was mauled by a kangaroo during her morning run over the weekend.
Debbie Urquhart, 54, was jogging towards the Candlebark track near Watties Road in Templestowe at around 6am on Saturday when she was attacked by a rogue kangaroo.
Ms Urquhart said the animal pinned her to the ground and repeatedly kicked her around like a "rag doll".
"This kangaroo just came out of nowhere and knocked me down and got stuck into me. It was rather frightening," Ms Urquhart told 9NEWS.
"The noises it was making were terrible and it just kept going for me. He was so aggressive."
"He probably could have killed me, I thank my lucky stars that I am alive."
“He ripped me to pieces,” Ms Urquhart said.
The 54-year-old ran 500 metres back to her home after pretending she was dead to stop the attack.
“He left me for a bit and I thought he was going to come back and kill me.”
Covered in blood, her husband Robert rushed her to the Austin Hospital.
She suffered multiple wounds to her arms, back and neck and received around 35 stitches.
Ms Urquhart said she’s determined to recover from the attack and get back to work but added she won’t be running near the track again.