Police in Heathfield have secured a heartwarming reunion by returning Ollie the cocker spaniel to his owners.
A huge 'doghunt' was sparked across social media after seventeen-month-old Ollie was stolen from Broad Oak Kennels in Udimore Road, Rye, in the early hours of Thursday, March 31.
At around 7am on Thursday morning (April 7) a resident in Brands Hatch, Kent, heard a scratching and whining at their back door – coming from a small, tan-coloured cocker spaniel.
They contacted Battersea Dogs Home, who recognised Ollie from the many online appeals, and contacted the owners.
Police collected the dog and had his microchip scanned, confirming that he was indeed Ollie and returned him to his 'ecstatic' owners Mark and Paula.
Mark said:
“This week has been the worst nightmare of my life. Ollie was bought as a therapy dog for my wife and him going missing absolutely destroyed her – she hadn’t stopped crying since last Thursday.
“Now she’s like a changed woman! Yesterday she’s happy, bubbly, we may even have polished off a couple of bottles of wine. And thankfully Ollie’s fine – probably a bit shell-shocked – but no injuries.
“I’d just like to say thank you to everyone involved. All the appeals on social media, everyone who shared them and the police for their investigation – I know how much they’ve been doing behind the scenes.”
Sergeant Jon Attfield, of Heathfield’s Rural Crime Team, said:
“Myself and PC Zoe King were delighted to be able to reunite Ollie with Mark and Paula, who have been so supportive in what has been a horrific week for them.
“It’s highly likely that Ollie’s captors have been forced to release him after a combination of extensive social media coverage and proactive work by officers from multiple policing teams simply made him too hot to handle. Luckily, Ollie has then had the good sense to make his way into someone’s back garden.
“The moment we saw Ollie in Brands Hatch we knew it was him, and it was such a pleasure to see him happy and healthy back at home.
“I’d like to thank everybody who shared appeals for information and all the people who supported this investigation.”
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