Team who saved stray dog in Desborough tell of tearful rescue

A dog who was straying for more than a week has been caught.

The lurcher-type dog was spotted on March 14 around Desborough where residents said he had been roaming for some time.

Locals kept watch on where the dog went, logging sighting online so rescue teams Doglost and Harvey’s Army – who had been drafted in to help – could catch him.

Wendy Gray from Harvey’s Army - who lives in Melton Mowbray but assisted with the operation – said: “A Facebook page was set up and the communities of Stoke Albany, Desborough and Wilbartson swung into action logging sightings and seeing where he was going without chasing or trying to catch him. He was covering around 15 miles a day between the villages and was seen as far out as Brampton Ashe and Dingley as well as ‘bin diving’ in Sainsburys at Desborough.

“More and more sightings came in and we began to build a plan. With the help of a number of locals food stations were set up and monitored but ‘Albany’ - as we had named him by then - was still covering a lot of distance a day and looking more and more skinny.”

Nearly a week later the team put out a trap, food trail and monitoring cameras in one of the areas he regularly visited.

They were left disappointed after Albany did not appear – but new sightings then came in of him in the village.

Wendy added: “The team immediately scrambled into action moving the trap to the new location and sprinkling sausages to where he had been spotted.

“Albany had clearly had enough and followed the trail into the trap. There were few heart stopping moments about whether he would go all the way in but then he was safely caught.

"He tucked into the rest of the trap food while we all cried with relief that another lost and desperate lad was safe.”

Albany is now safe with the dog warden and the team is looking to get him a rescue or foster place where he can then be adopted.

Wendy told the Mail: “He is such a lovely boy, extremely skinny so needs lots of love, care, good food and lots of sleep.”