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Snow place like home!

My pooch had an unlikely saviour!


Published by: Dawn Murden, Jean Jollands and Jemma Gillard
Published on: 7 March 2013

An inch of snow had fallen and outside was like a winter wonderland. But my three-year-old cairn terrier Maisie wasn't worried about getting her paws cold. She was ready for her walk.
I put Maisie's lead on and set off for the heath.
‘You love the snow,' I giggled, as Maisie bounced around. She was so mischievous and loved chasing after deer and wild pheasants.
Giggling away at Maisie, I wasn't paying attention to where we were walking. And suddenly,
I slipped on a frozen puddle.
‘Ouch!' I cried, as I flung my hands down to break my fall, losing hold of Maisie's lead. She shot off into the bushes.
‘Come back!' I yelled, pulling myself up. I was fine, but where had Maisie gone?
I called her name, but the forest was silent. Darkness was falling, so I walked to the National Trust Park warden's cottage. Together, we searched for an hour but there was no sign.
‘It's not looking hopeful,' he said sadly.
‘I can't leave her,' I said, fighting back tears. With no family living nearby, Maisie was my
only companion.
Back at the cottage, the warden's assistant handed me a phone number for a woman
called Helen.
‘She works for an organisation called DogLost that can help,' she said.
Back home, the house felt very empty.
‘Poor little mite,' I cried, looking at Maisie's bed. It was almost minus five degrees outside.
How would she survive the cold?
Worried sick, I couldn't sleep. The next morning, DogLost's volunteers threw themselves into the hunt. It was too treacherous for me, so I contacted the local radio and put
up posters instead.
After a week there was still no sign, and my hope faded.
Then, on the eighth day, Helen had news. A volunteer from Maidstone called Jenny was with her beagle Tiga, who was a trained tracker. Jenny had given Tiga Maisie's coat for a scent. A few hours later, Helen got a call to say that they'd found Maisie.
Shocked but thrilled, I drove to the heath to pick her up.
‘Maisie!' I cried, cuddling her.
‘Her lead snagged on a branch and she was trapped under a pile of snow,' Jenny explained. ‘The snow acted like a little igloo and kept her warm!'
At home, Maisie wolfed down her food and drunk three bowls of water.
‘Apart from weight-loss, she's fine,' the vet said when I took her for a check-up.
A month on, Maisie's back to normal, but people are still leaving treats on the doorstep for her.
I'm so grateful to everyone who helped me get her back.

Visit www.justgiving.com/jenny-brown-tiga2run
Margaret Charles, 79, Middleton, Suffolk