Missing dog found living in the wild in Sussex six years after disappearing

Rose had gone missing six miles away within 24 hours of being adopted in 2017

A dog that went missing more than six years ago has been found alive in Sussex.

Rose, who went missing in March 2017, was spotted in Crawley Down in November and was captured on Saturday.

Lost Dog Recovery UK South said the elderly dog cannot be reunited with her former family as they have moved away and are unable to care for her.

Once a rescue space is secured Rose will be looking for an experienced foster carer, the organisation said.

A camera had been set up to locate the 12-year-old Patterdale terrier and then a trap was laid out with a warm roast chicken, which lured Rose inside to be caught.

Lost Dog Recovery UK South said: "With the background we'd been given we were prepared for her to have no microchip, or have an owner listed who was long out of date. What we absolutely didn't expect was to discover that she was a long-term lost dog called Rose."

Rose was lured into a cage with roast chicken

The organisation also found that the dog had gone missing six miles away in Ashurst Wood within 24 hours of being adopted in 2017.

Lost Dog Recovery UK South said: "Although we will never know when exactly she came to settle in Crawley Down, what we do know is that she is finally safe and now will not spend the rest of her senior years fending for herself in the cold and wet."

"After the initial shock, our absolute joy at finding a long-lost dog is tinged with sadness as there is no 'happy reunion' for Rose; she never got the chance to know the love of her family," the organisation added.

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