Vera actress Brenda Blethyn and author Ann Cleeves are among the thousands of people to share a 91-year-old's desperate plea to find his family's missing dog. Flossie the border terrier cross went missing on September 2, 2021, near the dunes at the Ranch Car Park in Blyth, Northumberland, during a walk with her owners Gill and Nick Keeley.
Gill's heartbroken dad, Jim Scott, still searches for Flossie when he leaves his home to visit the shops, and Gill says he asks if Flossie has been found every time he sees his daughter.
Gill, from Tynemouth, North Tyneside, told ChronicleLive: "Dad was really fond of Flossie. We've always had dogs growing up and he loves dogs, he loves all animals really. He was as heartbroken as we were when she went missing and he could see how upset we were too.
It affects more than the people who own the dog when this happens, it affects everybody who knows the dog. He used to bring Flossie treats and really look forward to seeing her. He lives on his own and we used to bring Flossie round to see him so he was a sad as we were to hear she'd gone missing."
In an attempt to help find Flossie, Gill shared a photo of her dad holding Flossie's missing poster on social media. The post has been seen by over 1.5 million people and shared 25,000 times.
Former ITV Tyne Tees news presenter Pam Royle and Countdown presenter Rachel Riley are among those who have joined in sharing the 91-year-old's plea. The post is also said to have reached America.
Gill, 61, said: "We're stunned at how much the post has really touched people's hearts. Every time we looked at the numbers of views and shares they just kept growing and growing. I know it takes time and effort and thought to share a post, it's not just as simple as a click, so to see all of the support we've been getting, we're incredibly grateful.
"People who follow us on Facebook know it's affected me and Nick but maybe they don't realise that there's other people in Flossie's life that it has affected. My dad's 91 and sometimes when you get to that age you don't have a lot going on in your life sometimes and although it wasn't his pet he was very involved in her life so he's lost a member of his family too and I think that touched a lot of people's hearts."
Gill and Nick have taken a number of steps to help search for Flossie in the days since she went missing, including exploring rabbit warrens with endoscopes in case she was stuck underground, conducting searches of the sand dunes area, lighting BBQs and keeping night vigils at the dunes to draw her out if she was in hiding.
They also have a Facebook group called Flossie is Missing from Blyth, for people to share any information they may have about Flossie's whereabouts. The group currently has 7.3k members. Gill and Nick continue to make daily efforts to find their beloved dog but Gill suspects she may have been stolen. The couple are now offering a £15,000 reward for Flossie's safe return.
Gill said: "All we care about is getting our dog back. If someone has found her and kept her there's not going to be consequences if they come forward and say I've got your dog. Please just let us have her back if somebody has got her the money is there if they want it, if they don't drop her off at the vets or take her to an animal shelter. We just want her back."
