| Ireland's new wonder dog. From the BBC
 Tuesday April 14 2009
Move over Lassie, Laddy is Northern Ireland's new wonder dog.
The miracle hound fell 130 ft off a cliff on the Antrim coast and survived for eight days, trapped in a cave.
Margaret Williamson from Belfast said her family were on holiday in Ballycastle when Laddy, their springer spaniel, went missing.
"He disappeared on Saturday a week ago when my husband was out for a walk. The dog seems to have lost his footing and fallen over a cliff.
"We searched everywhere, all over the cliff. My grandson Conor Donnelly and my friend Teresa Gallagher helped us. There were posters all over Ballycastle and we could not leave the caravan site without Laddy."
On Easter Sunday, a yachtsman spotted the dog out on rocks and tried to get him to swim out to his boat. But Laddy refused.
He contacted the Coastguard and they rushed to the rescue.
A cliff technician scaled the cliff and winched Laddy to safety.
Ian Murdock from the Coastguard said the dog had a lucky escape.
"We are very happy to have recovered the dog. The cliff team did a great job. They used a harness and winch to get it back to the top of the cliff."
"We found the owner's number from a notice in a local chip shop and contacted them," he said.
Mrs Williamson said the dog, who is nearly three years old, was very dehydrated after his ordeal.
He had hurt his leg and had lost a lot of weight, but somehow had survived.
The family is delighted to have their wonder dog back home.
Dogs rescued from fire in Ireland to be re-homed. From the BBC
Thursday April 09 2009
Rescued fire dogs to be re-homed
The dogs were found after a flat at Ross House in Mount Vernon
Two dogs rescued from a fire at a rubbish-strewn north Belfast flat are to go into the care of an animal sanctuary, a judge has ruled.
They were removed from the Ross House flat of Ken McMillen in Mount Vernon after a fire last November.
Belfast Magistrates Court was told Mr McMillen had been led to safety when three dogs were found on a balcony.
One had to be destroyed. A judge ordered the remaining dogs stay at Mid-Antrim Animal Sanctuary for re-homing.
Mr McMillen did not attend Tuesday's hearing.
A police officer who went into the flat told the court it was piled with rubbish - chest high in one room.
He said the three dogs, border collies and a collie-springer cross, were found on an outside balcony.
The eldest of the animals, which were covered in urine and looked generally dirty, appeared unable to walk.
No water or food bowls could be seen in the flat, the court heard.
Although the dogs were taken away, by a member of staff at the Mid-Antrim Animal Sanctuary, the eldest had to be put down because it was suffering so much.
District Judge Fiona Bagnall granted the request for the animals to be kept at the kennel until they can be re-homed.
"I'm satisfied the dogs are to be disposed of by way of being placed in the care of the Mid-Antrim Animal Sanctuary," she said.
"Hopefully they will get a home."
Dog survives shark-infested waters and lives as castaway. From the BBC
Thursday April 09 2009
The springer spaniel's story of survival comes amid reports that a dog which was washed overboard and believed drowned was found four months later - as a castaway on a remote Australian island.
Sophie Tucker - named after the famous US entertainer - vanished as Jan and Dave Griffith sailed through stormy waters off Queensland last November.
But unknown to her owners, the plucky dog survived a long swim across shark-infested waters to an island.
There she lived on a diet of baby goats until being found by visiting rangers.
Springer Spaniel survives five weeks and two days in Scottish Hills. From the BBC
Thursday April 09 2009
Dog survives five weeks in hills
Oliver went missing while out on a walk with his owners
An ageing and partially deaf springer spaniel has survived five weeks and two days lost in the hills.
Oliver's owners had given him up for dead following fruitless searches after he ran off during a walk up Ben Fhionnlaidh near Glen Etive.
He went missing on 24 February, but was found curled up in a shed on 2 April - eight miles as the crow flies, but 44 by road, from his home in the glen.
His owner Deborah Wyton said Oliver had been very hungry and thirsty.
She said: "He is my wonder dog."
We thought he had gone off to die because 12 weeks earlier he had a stroke and the vet wasn't sure how long he would last
Deborah Wyton
Mrs Wyton and her husband Michael spent hours looking for 12-and-a-half year old Oliver after he disappeared while on a walk with three other of the family's dogs.
She said: "We thought he had gone off to die because 12 weeks earlier he had a stroke and the vet wasn't sure how long he would last."
The dog was discovered at a property on the opposite side of the munro Ben Fhionnlaidh.
The man who found him gave him food and water and had to clean his tag of mud to see who the owner was.
Mrs Wyton said: "I think I almost deafened the man when he told me he had found Oliver. I screamed. I was so happy."
Jack Russel terriers rescued by fire men - From the BBC
Thursday April 09 2009
Fire crews rescue burrowing dogs
It took six hours to free the two lost pets from the underground burrow
Fire crews mounted a six-hour rescue operation to find two Jack Russell terriers that became lost in an underground burrow in West Sussex.
Teams used special listening and camera equipment to find the two pets, called Charlie and Rosi, on Tuesday.
They were eventually found in two separate locations in a burrow in Whitemans Green, Cuckfield - Charlie ended up 5ft (1.52m) underground.
Owner Rachel Hartshorn said they saw the woods, got overexcited and ran off.
'Couldn't resist woods'
Ms Hartshorn, from Southwick, who was visiting a friend in Cuckfield at the time, said: "I'm normally quite cautious when walking the dogs because I've lost them once before.
"But they just couldn't resist the sight of the woods and nearby stream, so I let them off their leads so they could enjoy themselves."
She added that she was reluctant to call the fire service but crews were fantastic and she would not have had a chance of finding her dogs without them.
West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said permission had to be sought from Natural England to dig in the burrows near Haywards Heath.
Rosi was rescued at about 1750 BST, and Charlie was found nearly two hours later.
Both dogs were recovering at home on Wednesday. Rosi needed treatment for conjunctivitis caused by her ordeal.
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