Dan the dog safe after 10-day Shrawardine drain ordeal
[gallery] A tiny border terrier miraculously survived getting trapped 12ft underground in a drain near Shrewsbury for 10 days – after being sniffed out by a neighbour's Jack Russell while he was out for a walk with his owner.
A tiny border terrier miraculously survived getting trapped 12ft underground in a drain near Shrewsbury for 10 days – after being sniffed out by a neighbour's Jack Russell while he was out for a walk with his owner.
Nine-year-old dog Dan ran off from Andrew Barkley, 41, and his wife Beverley, 37, on January 30, close to their home in Shrawardine.
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The former rescue centre dog was feared dead when he failed to return as temperatures plummted as low as -7C (19F), but on Thursday – exactly ten days later – Dan was discovered trapped in a drain by neighbour Margaret Bedford and her Jack Russell Alfie.
Alfie alerted his owner to Dan by stopping near the drain alongside the Severn Way path between Shrawardine and Montford before Mrs Bedford heard a whimper coming from underground.
Mrs Bedford raised the alarm with Mrs Barkley, and farmer Adrian Bright and local gamekeeper Mike Jackson helped to drag the drain cover off and rescue the pet.
Dan, who only suffered cuts and grazes in his ordeal, has now been reunited with Mrs Barkley, who got him when he was a puppy as a Valentine's Day present off her husband.
Mr Barkley today said: "Beverley was simply mortified when it was apparent he wasn't coming home. It's a miracle to have Dan home and I suppose the perfect present to Beverley for Valentine's Day."
