North East Hampshire owner of dog who went missing for 6 weeks thanks local community for support

Darwin, who's a Labrador, is now safe and well

A Facebook page committed to finding Darwin gained over 2,000 followers
Author: Alex DukePublished 12th Dec 2023

An owner from North East Hampshire whose dog went missing for six weeks has said thank you to the local community for their help and support.

Darwin, who is a black Labrador, was eventually found after an extensive search.

The 9 year old, who the owner Sue describes as her "best friend" and "laid back", went missing on the 29th September, and was brought home on the 11th November.

Sue describes Darwin as her "best friend"

There was a huge local initiative to help find Darwin, with a Facebook page dedicated to finding him growing to over two thousand followers.

Darwin was eventually found after a tireless search effort.

"The sense of community was incredible"

Sue spoke to Greatest Hits Radio, and explained that the local community in North East Hampshire had a big impact.

"People were messaging 'don't give up, he's out there somewhere', 'we will find him', we had members of the community messaging us to say 'I think we've seen him'

"People were out everyday when they were walking their own dogs - keeping an eye out for him. So when we found him they said 'oh that's amazing, we never stopped looking for him.

"The sense of community was incredible."

Sue added that it was difficult to get Darwin back, because his behaviour had changed quite significantly.

"They will switch into this survival mode where they almost tap in to their wolf part of their DNA. They go "I need to survive" and therefore, they view humans as a threat."

Sue also explained that help is out there for dog owners in a similar situation.

"If you do find yourself in this absoliutely horrendous position... there are people out there who will put themselves out for you and help you. There are agencies out there that will come and assist you with recovering your dog, and give you the advice you need really."

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