02/06/2026
What a day!! We teamed up with Counters Canine Services and went to Whitemills Dog Park this morning - as we've done many times before with no issues - but this time...
Stella disappeared.
Literally vanished, no sign, no sound. We were somewhere secure so she wasn't wearing her harness, which has her bells and her tracker on it. Amy walked all round the field first while I got the others in the van, then waited with the others while I walked round calling. I checked in with the garden centre but nobody there had seen her. She'd been gone about 30mins at this point and I was ugly crying, convinced she'd gone miles and the road is so close... worrying about the others in the van in the sun, but also not wanting to leave without her.
Then Amy said, "I'll just check up here in case she remembered where the horses are." Stella likes to watch the horses and rabbits and it was a good shout - and she heard Stella bark!
She had gone under the fence of the pumping station, and we think had thought she could go across the blanket w**d on the river to get to the horse field. Of course, she went straight through, panicked, and somehow managed to wedge herself through the bars of the cage surrounding the pump mechanism, and then couldn't get out.
Amy somehow got me over the fence and I got sight of Stella, but couldn't get down to her and she couldn't get out without help. Lee and Helen, the owners of the park, were there within 10 minutes, and called the Environment Agency, who sent Ray, Dan, and Dave from the Plucks Gutter depot.
Half hour after that, the gates were open, the pumping station powered off (I'm glad I didn't know at the time, but if that had gone into operation due to the rain, Stella would have been sucked in and I'm not letting myself think further than that), Dan was getting his dry suit on, ropes, nets, poles, hooks were deployed, and into the river went Dan to try to get Stella out the way (we think) she went in.
In true Stella fashion, though, she was having none of it. She hates being picked up anyway, and she was not best impressed that she was cold, wet, and scared, and now this guy was trying to force her off the tiny ledge and back into the river, so she went completely stiff and therefore wouldn't fit through the gap.
Lots of thinking later, Amy had the brilliant idea for Dan to lift her at the other end of the ledge, where the gap above was bigger due to one less panel. Amy and Helen reached down, Dan somehow lifted Stella up without going under himself, and Amy caught her legs, and out she came, straight into my arms. Dry off, warm up, few treats, and she turned straight back round to assess her chances of getting into the horse field!!
Stella's been to Dafne Veterinary Hospital and been checked over, and apart from a sore back and legs, she's none the worse for her ordeal. Loxicom for 7 days, and job done, thank goodness.
So, lessons learned today:
1. Stella's never going anywhere without her bells and tracker on, ever again
2. It doesn't matter how people prepare for every eventuality, we are only human and accidents happen; it's how you deal with them when they arise that matters. Lee asked Amy to show him where Stella got through and had that hole patched up less than an hour after she got through it. Lee and Helen cancelled the next bookings - not just until the fence was secure, but until Stella was safe. They offered tea, coffees, dog treats, help, a calm voice, comfort, and sent us home with towels and blankets to keep Stella warm, which they insisted we keep. They offered to pay for vet bills, treatment, tried to repay the EA guys (who aren't allowed to take gifts, not even a bottle of water), and have messaged this evening to make sure Stella's OK. We see the love that's been poured into creating the dog park every time we visit, and we felt that love and care through every moment today.
3. Sometimes, the stars do just align. Amy being there, the weather clouding over and raining enough to prevent the others getting hot in the van but not enough to set the pump working, the dogs had all had a swim in the pool which I'm sure helped keep them cool while they were waiting, Stella finding that little ledge to stand on until we got to her, everything. Someone was definitely watching over us today and I'm so grateful 🙏
4. Repeat lesson number 1!!
