Valerie, the miniature dachshund: Pet canine discovered alive 16 months after being misplaced in wilderness | EUROtoday

When a miniature dachshund went lacking in November 2023 on a South Australian island, her distressed proprietor cried for days whereas desperately making an attempt to trace her down, assuming she had no probability of surviving on her personal within the wild.

But 16 months after she disappeared, Valerie has been noticed alive on Kangaroo Island in South Australia, to the shock of wildlife consultants.

Valerie went lacking whereas on vacation together with her homeowners, Georgia Gardner and Josh Fishlock. Though they searched the island for every week with native assist, she wasn’t seen once more not too long ago.

“We spent probably five days of the rest of our trip looking for her, but without any luck unfortunately,” Mr Fishlock informed Nine News’ Today. After futile makes an attempt to seek out Valeria, they left the island to return to their lives.

But he mentioned that within the months following Valerie’s disappearance, there have been reported sightings of her on the Kangaroo Island.

“She never left my side. She was not a very outside, rough-and-tough dog. To think that she even went one night outside in the rain, oh my gosh. To think that she’s gone a year and a half is incredible,” Ms Gardner was quoted as saying by The Guardian.

The canine, whose exact age was not out there, continues to evade seize regardless of efforts by volunteers and wildlife consultants.

The Kangala Wildlife Rescue confirmed her survival via video proof and set traps with cameras to attempt to catch her. On their Facebook web page, the organisation wrote: “Based on first-hand accounts and video evidence we now know that Valerie is alive. She runs at the first sign of humans or vehicles and despite the best efforts of dedicated Island locals, Valerie has been impossible to catch.”

Mr Fishlock informed Nine News: “We were initially a bit sceptical of all the sightings, then only probably three weeks ago, we received a photo from one of the locals and that sparked a lot of hope in us. It’s given us nearly 100 per cent certainty that she’s still alive.”

However, she reportedly turns into skittish when somebody tries to method her and shortly flees once more.

Despite being a “princess” and never suited to the wild, Valerie’s outstanding resilience has shocked her rescuers.

Ms Gardner mentioned: “We thought, instead of her surviving out in the wild, maybe someone had kind of adopted her or she was hanging out with some other dogs and getting their food, because she was an absolute little princess.”

“I remember on the first day I was just covered in tears. We barely ate anything,” she informed The Adelaide Advertiser. “My whole world just crumbled. When we left the island without her, I cried for days.”

Kangala wrote on their Instagram: “We are using surveillance and various trapping and luring methods in the area she was last seen to try and bring her home. This is a tiny dog in a huge area, and we will need help from the public to report any sightings and a lot of luck.”

Experts are amazed by the canine’s survival, speculating that she could have eaten roadkill, dam water, or probably acquired assist from locals. Paul McGreevy of the University of Sydney’s veterinary faculty mentioned that like all canines, dachshunds had been “extremely resourceful”. He mentioned: “Dogs are the greatest opportunists in the animal kingdom: that’s one of their core skills.”

On Kangala’s Facebook web page, one person wrote: “Please put down the owner’s unwashed clothing down at sighting locations. Ask people who see her to sit down and not make eye contact. Putting out food with liquid smoke trails with trail cameras will help but the clothes are essential. Her owners need to be there asap.

“They need to walk around but not call out to her as she won’t be able to recognise them at first. Dachshunds tend to hide against surfaces to seek comfort.”