A 22-year-old woman was apparently mauled to death by her own dogs, described as pit bulls, according to Virginia law enforcement.

Bethany Lynn Stephens’ body was found in a wooded area in Goochland, V.A., with wounds on her hands, arms, throat and face consistent with a mauling, WTVR reports. Stephens’ father went looking for her on Thursday, and reportedly discovered her dogs standing watch over her body.

“It was an absolutely grisly mauling ,” Sheriff James Agnew told WTVR. “In my 40 years of law enforcement I’ve never seen anything quite like it. I hope I never see anything like it again.”

Agnew told WTVR that the dogs appeared to initiate the mauling. Evidence suggests the attack began when Stephens was alive, and became fatal after she fell to the ground unconscious. There is no evidence of a homicide, WTVR reports, and the sheriff’s office will look to euthanize the pit bulls.

Get The Brief. Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know right now. Please enter a valid email address. Sign Up Now Check the box if you do not wish to receive promotional offers via email from TIME. You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Thank you! For your security, we've sent a confirmation email to the address you entered. Click the link to confirm your subscription and begin receiving our newsletters. If you don't get the confirmation within 10 minutes, please check your spam folder.

Write to Jamie Ducharme at jamie.ducharme@time.com.