A Whitley Bay family has given their thanks to the local community after residents pulled together in an incredible effort to find their lost dog.
The Straker family was put through every pet owner’s worst nightmare when Willow, their one-year-old poodle cross, went missing on Saturday. Owners Sarah and Paul Straker were away on holiday in Keswick at the time with their three children, 12-year-old Eva and 9-year-old twins Isla and Hanna.
Paul’s dad George was taking care of Willow and their other dog Poppy while they were away, and was out on a walk on Churchill Playing Fields in Monkseaton on Saturday when “lively and energetic” Willow slipped out of her harness. The pup is thought to have spent several hours running around nearby housing estates, before being spotted on the Metro line near West Monkseaton station that evening - much to the terror of her adoring owners.
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Not wanting to panic the family while on holiday, George set out looking for Willow in the hopes of finding her. But Sarah and Paul made the “gut-wrenching” discovery that their dog was missing in the worst way imaginable after seeing a photo shared on Facebook of Willow on the Metro line.
The family’s holiday came to an abrupt end as after a "massive panic" and a sleepless night they set off back to Whitley Bay at 4am to join the search for their young dog. When they arrived home in the early hours of Sunday, the response that Sarah and Paul found to Willow’s disappearance left them overwhelmed.
A number of people had turned up at West Monkseaton Metro station at the crack of dawn - some armed with dog biscuits and hot dogs, others bringing binoculars in the hopes of spotting Willow. The helpers ranged from friends of the family to people that they had never even met before.
A Facebook post by Sarah appealing for Whitley Bay residents to keep an eye out for Willow was shared hundreds of times, and countless others went out looking for the dog in their local area. Even before Sarah and Paul had managed to get home, more than a dozen people had turned up to help and support George, who is in his late 70s, in the search.
Among the amazing team of helpers was a man named Mick who offered to use a drone to help find Willow, with Sarah and Paul saying his assistance was “instrumental” in her rescue. Another helper searched the area using his thermal imaging camera in a bid to track the pup down, and a dog rescue expert also came on hand to offer advice.
Nexus Tyne and Wear Metro staff also got involved in the rescue, with Metro drivers promising to keep an eye out for Willow while passing through the area and other staff members helping Sarah and Paul to search for their dog along the tracks. A number of residents living along the Metro line also got in touch with the family to give them access to their back gardens to search for Willow.
A group of women sat at West Monkseaton late into the night on Saturday to watch out for Willow, speaking to drivers as they passed through the area to urge them to drive slowly in case the dog ran out into the road. Helpers even travelled to the coast from further afield, with one man turning up from Westerhope armed with a special dog lead that he offered to the family to help get hold of Willow.
Thanks to the incredible search efforts from the local community, Willow was eventually found on Sunday huddled in a tiny space between two fences. A group of helpers assisted Sarah and Paul in slipping a lead over Willow’s head and lifting the pup over the top of the six-foot fence to safety.
Sarah compared the emotional moment that they finally got their beloved dog back to the experience of first holding her children. “Willow came over the top, and then she was handed to me and it was like being handed your child when you’ve just given birth,” she said. “It was amazing - total tears of joy.”
Willow is now back home where she belongs, and although the pup has been left worn out and with some small scrapes from her ordeal she has been holding up well with plenty of extra cuddles from her family. “They say cats have nine lives - in this case, I think dogs do,” Paul said.
The family said that they have been “totally overwhelmed” by the support shown to them, adding that it’s difficult to put into words how grateful they are for the help offered by the community - from family and friends to complete strangers. From the group of teenagers who turned up with bags of dog treats to the woman who ran to the shops to buy a tin of hot dogs in a bid to lure Willow out, they want to extend their thanks to every single person who helped bring their dog home.
“Everyone was instrumental in making this happen - we couldn’t have done it without all this help,” Sarah said. “I can’t convey how much we appreciate it.”
“It really restores your faith in what people can do,” Paul added. “I’m born and bred here, and I’m very passionate about the place and the people. It’s a great network of people who come together in times of trouble, or whenever they see someone else in need.”
The story of Willow’s rescue is a true testament to the sense of community at the heart of Whitley Bay. “It makes you realise what a wonderful place you live in and what a great community we have here,” Sarah said.
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