News, Northamptonshire
The owner of a dog that was stuck down a 13ft (4m) well for 11 days said she could not thank firefighters enough for “saving his life”.
Dorota Gruszczynska said 10-year-old Jimmy, a corgi cross, went missing on 21 June while on a walk in Corby, Northamptonshire, and she was finally reunited with him on 2 July.
She said the much-loved pet was on a walk when he chased after something and did not come back.
After she posted online and got the local community involved to help find him, he was eventually found wedged under some cylinders and was lifted to safety.
Ms Gruszczynska said Jimmy “chased something, maybe a deer and did not come back”.
“We searched the area so many times and nothing, we created posters, put them online and sent them around the local area,” she added.
She also contacted Thermal Drone Support Bedfordshire to help.
After he had been missing for several days, she “started to lose hope” and added: “We thought he had been hit by a car and we would never see him again.”
Then on 2 July, she got a message from a firefighter saying they thought they had her dog.
She said: “Firefighters had been called to the area, and had heard him barking, they asked if he had a green harness on and told me he was alive.
“It was near where we had lost him, we had called him so much in the area, but never heard him barking. We couldn’t believe it was him.”
She continued: “We’re so grateful for everyone who helped, including the drone company. They did a huge amount of work, purely out of their heart.
“So many people shared the cause, and it helped as the firefighters knew to contact me.”
Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service confirmed a Corby crew was attending a nearby fire when they heard the sound of a dog barking that was found down a well on Stephenson Way.
It said crews used a reach pole and lines to lift cylinders off Jimmy, so he could be lifted to safety.
After searching local missing dog pages, it was able to contact his owner, it added.
Ms Gruszczynska said Jimmy was taken to the vets to be checked over, and was found to be really hungry but not dehydrated.
“He’s back on his feet, he’s recovered surprisingly well, we don’t know how he survived, there must have been water in the well,” she added.
