by Wendy Johnson
THE owners of Basset hound cross ‘Pebbles the Rebel’ have described a rescue mission that brought their beloved pet safely home – thanks to social media, the community working together and the dedication of an expert trapping team.
Owners Stuart and Julie Peters, of Festival Avenue in Orford, were calling in on a family party in Birchwood on Saturday January 29th but things took a dreadful turn for the worse as the eight-month-old cross spooked and fled.
The family gave chase but hours of searching proved fruitless. An anxious Julie then turned to social media and her plea for help attracted the immediate attention of animal lovers from across north Warrington.
Pebbles was initially spotted running towards Birchwood Shopping Centre. Still attached to her harness and lead, which she thankfully managed to shed, she was too quick to catch, and she eventually went to ground. This was the start of what her rescue team described as her ‘very own six-night mystery tour of the town.’
There were several sightings of the distinctive-looking pooch reported by concerned residents who joined in the search.
“People who saw her pointed in the direction she ran. We searched everywhere that night and continued to search 24/7. I took emergency leave from work and my husband would go out when he came home from work. We drove around in the early hours and sat outside Birchwood Train Station and the shopping centre hoping she would emerge.” said Julie. “We had all sorts of help and the whole community of Birchwood was out looking for her. The amount of help we received was overwhelming.”
But If things couldn’t get any worse, they were about to as Pebbles was spotted dangerously close to the railway line at Birchwood. With Pebbles’ safety at risk, the Lost Dog Trapping Team UK Search and Rescue Network sprang into action and ‘Team Pebbles’ was set in motion.
“Sightings were coming in almost daily.” said team leader Nick Smith. “Rather than choosing to chill on a beach like most Pebbles, this one decided she was going to play chicken with the trains. She was seen jumping out of the way of trains to get to either side of the tracks!”
His team managed to trace Pebbles’ movements and they were able to lay a scent trail of ‘gravy’ from the trackside all the way to the safety of nearby farmland owned by Woolston Nursery. Nick added: “Tracker Heather Cake is amazing at assisting any missing dogs locally, but not so good at choosing the weather conditions. She went out in freezing conditions, pouring rain and a hailstorm to lay this trail. It was a race against time really. Pebbles was dicing with death with the trains, roads and the M6 in spitting distance.”
Once Pebbles had slowed down from her ‘tour of the town‘ and hunger getting the better of the wary canine, Nick said a humane trap was set up on the farmland site. He said Pebbles couldn’t resist the ‘awesome all-you-can-eat-buffet’ inside and on the early evening of February 4th she was finally captured unharmed.
Julie said: “We got Pebbles checked over and she was fine, just a bit dehydrated. She’s her usual bouncy self again, tail wagging and playing wither her puppy companion Willow. We cannot begin to even put into words how much we appreciate the help and support of everyone. The whole community came together. The trapping team was amazing. They do this voluntarily in their spare time whilst they have families and jobs. They are absolute angels, and we are forever grateful.”
