Emmerdale character Paddy Kirk will be taken to hospital after a dog attack as part of a new storyline that will also see actress Jaye Griffiths joining the ITV soap.
Griffiths, who has starred in the crime shows Death in Paradise and Silent Witness as well as the BBC soaps Casualty and Doctors, will play tenant farmer Celia, a neighbour of Moira Dingle (Natalie J Robb).
Celia, who has a bad reputation, will be seen on screen from June.
She calls on Moira to ask if she can rent two of her fields, but Moira says no.
Later, vet Paddy (Dominic Brunt) will be taken to hospital after an encounter with the new farmer's guard dogs.
Celia will show her "true colours from her reaction to the attack", the soap teased.
Griffiths said: "I was delighted to get this role. Without giving the game away, she is very different to anyone I have played before, and I can't wait to really get into the heart of her storyline."
The new Emmerdale star previously played the tough police officer Sally Johnson in The Bill, chaotic consultant Elle Gardner on Casualty and, briefly, Holby City; and Doctors' ambitious GP Elizabeth Croft.
Emmerdale producer Laura Shaw said: "We are absolutely delighted to have Jaye Griffiths joining us to play the role of Celia.
"Having recently taken over a nearby farm, not much is known about mysterious Celia's past before arriving on the outskirts of the village.
"While Celia has a tough edge with an air of respectability, the audience, and our villagers, will soon start to see what this woman is truly capable of."
Celia is renting from Kim Tate, played by Claire King, and her arrival could spark a rivalry with the established farming families of the Bartons and the Sugdens, the soap also suggested.
Emmerdale airs weeknights on Virgin Media One and ITV1.
