Powys dog found in ambulance after eight-month search

A family has been reunited with its pet dog after an eight-month search.

Cocker spaniel Jazz disappeared from her home in Powys last year - and appeared in Wolverhampton, more than 50 miles (80km) away, in an unlikely place.

She had been apparently dumped in the back of an ambulance while the crew was attending to a patient.

She was handed in to a vet's practice in Wolverhampton, where Jazz's owners were traced.

"I honestly can't believe what happened," Emma Darling, 45, said.

Jazz' disappearance had left her family distraught, and they put up posters, used social media and looked for their much-loved pet every day.

However, eight months later, their search had proved fruitless.

"Jazz just disappeared that day. At first we thought she had got out, but she had never done that before," said Emma.

"The next day we started to think maybe she had been stolen as she hadn't come back.

"The first three months I literally trawled missing and stolen dog social media groups and selling sites, and shared the dog lost poster anywhere and everywhere.

"We were so worried about how she was being treated, whether she was being fed and if she had a dry, warm place when it was cold."

Emma described being unable to eat and feeling like her head "was about to explode" with the worry.

"Some days I just cried," she added.

"My two daughters were so upset, it was absolutely heart-breaking. We felt so sad for so long."

However, one phone call would change everything.

An ambulance worker, called Alex, had found Jazz in the back of her ambulance during a shift.

She took her home, washed and looked after her until the vet surgery opened the next day.

After scanning her microchip, Emma's details were found and she was contacted.

"Jazz was wet and tired, with algae on her coat, so Alex thinks she may have been dumped in the nearby canal," Emma said.

"It took me a while to not cry every time I mentioned Alex when I told Jazz's story - she truly is an angel, I will always be so grateful to her."

Currently, it is a legal requirement for dogs to be microchipped in the UK.

As part of National Microchipping Month, database Petlog has encouraged owners to make sure their pets are microchipped.