When his English Springer Spaniel Daisy was stolen from his Kent home in 2020, Francis Briley thought he would never see her again. Daisy’s microchip details had never been registered, which made the odds of recovering her much more difficult.
Eighteen months later, a woman saw a stray dog wandering in Bracknell, seventy miles away from Kent. That woman’s diligence and detective work would help make the impossible a reality.
A Civilian Goes Above And Beyond
Once she reported the spaniel she found, the dog was handed over to the Public Protection Partnership animal warden team and checked out by a vet. She then spent seven nights in the kennels.
In the meantime, the woman who found the dog decided to see if she belonged to anyone. In a Facebook post, Public Protection Partnership wrote:
“The lady who found the dog then went above and beyond by trawling through the Dogs Lost website, trying to match the dog she’d found to reports of missing dogs.”
The kidnappers clipped Daisy’s fur, possibly to disguise her identity. The dog’s distinctive markings helped this woman match her to the spaniel advertised on Dogs Lost in 2020.
“Our animal warden team were contacted and they investigated the lead further and spoke with Kent Police. After some in depth investigation by our team the animal wardens were able to confirm that the stray spaniel was indeed Daisy.”
Briley, in complete disbelief that someone found his dog, expressed his gratitude to this kind-hearted civilian and the Animal Warden team:
“I just can’t believe I have her back. I really didn’t think I’d ever see her again. I’m so grateful to the lady who found her and to the Animal Warden team for bringing us back together again. We’re all overjoyed.”
A veterinary examination confirmed that Daisy “was in reasonable health” but had recently had a litter of puppies. Therefore, it’s likely she was stolen to breed on a puppy farm.
Microchip Your Animals And Register Them!
Kira, one of Public Protection Partnerships Animal Wardens said they’re glad Daisy is back home, but she and her family are extremely fortunate for this outcome.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to be able to reunite Daisy with her family. But they’re very lucky this happened. When a dog’s microchip isn’t registered it’s rare to be able to reunite dog with owner. We urge all dog owners to make sure your dog’s microchip details are registered and up to date on a DEFRA approved database.”
Daisy was picked up as a stray on January 14th, but she wasn’t reunited with her true owner for an additional seven days. Kira said she probably would have been returned much sooner if her chip details had been registered.
“Instead she spent 7 days in kennels and was very close to being re-homed.”
Still, because of a civilian’s detective work and a post online about a missing dog, Daisy is back where she belongs. Microchipping your pets is the first step, but don’t forget to register and update their details as well!