Crowfield woman finds dog after thinking she had buried her

Codie Hutton said Maisie "just bolted" when a firework went off near Melton Playing Fields

A woman whose dog got spooked by a firework and ran away was reunited with her pet two days after she thought she had buried her.

Codie Hutton, 26, from Crowfield, Suffolk, said she lost springer spaniel Maisie in Melton on 5 November.

Two days later a body believed to be Maisie's was found and Miss Hutton and her family buried it in their garden.

Some 48 hours after that, however, nine-year-old Maisie was found and reunited with the family.

Miss Hutton believes it was the body of a fox that was initially buried.

"It's been a rollercoaster," she said.

"I will never forget it, that's for sure."

Miss Hutton said the five-day ordeal started when Maisie "bolted and ran out of sight" after a firework went off while they were at Melton Playing Fields, as first reported in the East Anglian Daily Times.

"It was my worst nightmare," she said.

"It was still quite early, there shouldn't have been any fireworks going off."

The family buried an animal's dead body in their garden, thinking it was Maisie

She said Maisie was spotted going towards Ufford, where she was clipped by a car, and across the A12 towards Bredfield.

Searches continued for another two nights but the next day, Miss Hutton was told an animal's body, thought to be Maisie's, had been found in Clopton.

"It tied in with the last sighting and from the body alone, it just looked like Maisie," said Miss Hutton.

She said her son Taylen, three, was "devastated" and they held a burial for Maisie in the garden.

"My mum, dad, two brothers, nan, my nan's partner and my best friend was there for the burial."

The following day, however, more sightings of Maisie were reported.

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With help from volunteer group Finding Ipswich Dogs Organisation (FIDO) and a team of 20 people, more searches took place and Maisie was found in Wickham Market.

Maisie was none the worse for wear after her adventure

"She was just crying with excitement," said Miss Hutton.

The pet owner said Maisie was not injured but had an infection to her eyes, ears and stomach.

"I felt shocked, lost for words and over joyed when we found Maisie," she said.

"I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who shared the post and who helped us search for Maisie."

Sam French, who runs FIDO, said: "It was a really great outcome for Maisie but as a society we need to think about the impact fireworks have on dogs."

She urged people organising displays to post details on social media community groups so dog owners are aware.