Lost dogs: The team reuniting pooches with their owners

From detecting the faint barking of pups stuck in quarries to finding spooked dogs who've bolted through fireworks, this team of dog rescuers rarely has a dull day.

Missing Dogs Team Wales has helped hundreds of pets during the pandemic.

Jill Trick "can't even put a total" on how many she has helped to locate in the seven years she's been involved.

But some stick in Jill's mind, including two dogs who escaped near M4 services within a month of each other.

"Because of the very dangerous area [in which] they both had run off, it had to be very carefully planned and monitored," dog rescuer Jill, who works in the Swansea area, said.

Despite no links to each other, the pair both escaped very shortly after being adopted.

"Food was first placed to keep them interested, along with wildlife cameras to see them eating the food," she said.

Jill said the first dog, Ben, was safely caught in a trap inside a shed by her colleague Anthony Bailey, but Pembrokeshire Corgi Charm was still missing.

"I found an old dumped wheelie bin in nearby bushes which I set up as a bedding area for her to stay warm and dry," Jill said.

"This was January last year and temperatures were freezing. That week, we viewed the cameras and saw that she was coming near this makeshift bed after we left the area during the day and the night."

Jill, a former coordinator and police liaison for Wales with Doglost, approached Charm with a friend one night, and coaxed her closer to them with pieces of chicken.

"Thankfully the last piece of chicken worked in my favour and she was reunited the next day when her new owner travelled from Gloucester to fetch her."

Jill's team was even called in on Christmas Eve to help Bobby, a crossbreed who went missing.

The team went searching with the help of an English Pointer, Joe, who belongs to one of the volunteers.

They followed reports of distant whining at a quarry, and the team arranged for a drone and fire service to help with the search.

Bobby was finally spotted on a ledge, rescued and reunited with his family on Boxing Day.

But Bobby is not the only dog with a dramatic Christmas 2020 tale to tell.

Chihuahua Enzo went missing on 20 December while off the lead on a walk with a family member, and spent 11 days up a mountain in the cold winter weather.

Enzo ended up in the garden of a farmer, but was safe and unharmed apart from a few marks where his harness had been.

And in another situation, a dog escaped his elderly owner's car and ran through traffic - only to disappear.

But the team managed to find Sam the next day and he was taken home.

Another, Meg, actually bolted through fireworks but was discovered the next day and reunited with her owner Julie.

Jill, who works in a team of about nine volunteers, said it can be a 24/7 job.

"It's that intense. There were more dogs last year than in seven, and already in January there are many stolen again."

The team scans social media for posts about lost dogs, and contacts owners for details.

"The first thing we do is take the details and give advice about scenting, so putting unwashed laundry on the line for the dog to pick up that scent. Bedding, and especially pillow cases, is very effective."

Nine times out of 10, Jill says, this approach works - even in coastal areas or up on mountains, the team finds dogs are able to find their way home from this simple action.

But if it doesn't work, it's time to check with the owner whether the dog has a microchip and ensure their contact information is up to date.

Then, it's time for posters and social media - ideally all still within 24 hours of the dog going missing.

"We keep in touch with the owners throughout, and if it's close to home for one of us we will join in the search, although that's harder with Covid restrictions," Jill said.

They focus on areas where there have been sightings, and can set up cameras to see if the dog is still in that area.

"I go out with Swedish meatballs, no dog can resist that," she added.

And Jill says she never gets used to the feeling of reuniting a lost dog with their owner, no matter how often she does it.

"I don't think there's any other feeling like it. I've been doing it so long but every time I still get that buzz, knowing the dog is back with its owner where it should be.

"You know there's another one that's going to go missing within hours, but you still get that good feeling."

But when there is not a happy ending, or no resolution at all, Jill says it can stay with her and the team.

"It does affect all of us, we've all had a cry.

"When you're sharing it with the owner, in constant contact with the owner, it's part of your life too.

"But bad news does give closure at least, the owner knows and they're not still wondering what happened."

But whatever the outcome, Jill and her team get to see the very best of humanity - with strangers helping to share appeals, volunteering to help look and offering support.

"It's just amazing," Jill said.

"We've had an influx of volunteers and 5,000 people in the Facebook group.

"They all want to be a part of this and help to get a dog back."

"They can imagine, I can imagine, how they would feel if they lost one of their own dogs," she added.

"I'm a dog lover, I always have been."