Bully's home - thanks to Moray Facebook users
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A FAMILY has been overwhelmed by the kindness of the Moray public who helped them find their beloved pet dog which went missing for more than three days.
Bully, a fourteen-and-a-half year old Staffordshire terrier, disappeared last Sunday when his owner Lara Brown and her family were visiting friends near Elgin.
Frantic with worry after a six-hour search failed to locate Bully, the mum-of-four was forced to head back to her Aberdeenshire home more than 50 miles away without her wandering pooch.
That evening she started a ‘Help Find Bully’ campaign on Facebook which drew an incredible response from Moray, with almost a thousand people registering ‘likes’ and many more following the progress of the subsequent search.
Scores of people went out searching the countryside between Elgin and Lossiemouth over the course of the next three days, before there was joy on Wednesday night when a Lossiemouth woman contacted Lara to say she had found Bully in a field behind Duffus Castle.
"I got a phone call asking me if I was Bully’s owner, and when I said I was, the girl said: ‘we’ve got him!"," Lara said. "She burst into tears and so did I, it was just an amazing feeling.
"The people of Moray are just fantastic. We just can’t believe so many people took the time to look for him, and to offer us so much support.
"Everybody came together for Bully – it was brilliant."
Bully’s return meant joy for Lara’s four children Ryan (14), twins Robbie and Joel (3) and 18-month-old Iona, and her partner Santiago Galvez Porta, all of who dote on the Staffie.
"The kids are just all over him, giving him kisses. When I told my eldest we’d found him, he was jumping all over the place he was so happy," Lara added.
"I’m so relieved I went on Facebook. It’s an example of social networking at it’s very best, and it got so many people involved. I can’t thank them enough."
During his great adventure, it’s believed Bully had wandered from a farm at Castlehill, near Elgin and sought refuge at neighbouring farms and cottages.
Lara was contacted by one couple who had taken him in and fed him, thinking he was owned by one of their neighbours.
Another girl out searching for the lost pooch discovered her grandfather had spotted him wandering the previous day, but was unaware of the appeal for a lost dog in the area.
Bully’s Facebook page drew concern from across the UK and even from Australia, and the Duffus area was scene of dozens of drivers and dog walkers combing the vicinity to try and locate him.
Lara said because Bully is now at an advanced age he is going blind and deaf, and doesn’t like cold or wet weather, so she thinks the experience of being lost out in the opening would have been a terrifying one for him.
He was eventually found by Lossiemouth resident Rhian Baker, who had earlier heard Bully whining and howling but was unable to find where he was.
Hours later he was back home, hungry and thirsty after his travels but otherwise unharmed.
"it wasn’t long before he was lying comfy, sleeping in his bed," Lara said.
"We’re so glad he’s home – but he’s grounded now!"
Don’t miss next week’s Northern Scot for more on Bully’s story.
