Beloved German shepherd Mary Jane finally reunited with Gold Coast owner Jamie Smith
An emotional owner has heaped praise on police after his beloved dog was returned following a long battle with pet-sitters. Here’s how he got his dog back.
Gold Coast
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POLICE have helped a grateful owner reunite with his missing German shepherd, after a dog sitter allegedly failed to return her.
Eight-year-old dog Mary Jane had allegedly been kept by the dog-sitters since May, while her owner Jamie Smith moved from the Gold Coast to the Sunshine Coast.
The plan was for Mary Jane to be with Mr Smith’s family friends for two weeks, but after repeated attempts to pick her up over the past four months Mr Smith became desperate.
He said he even spent six hours out the front of the home where Mary was staying in the hope of collecting her.
The metal roofer said he was also alerted to the pet-sitters attempting to change the ownership of the dog via the chip, but successfully blocked the change.
“I have had her since she was 10 weeks old, when I adopted her from the Animal Welfare League,” Mr Smith said.
“We have travelled all across Australia together. She is my best friend.
“I lost my faith in humanity.”
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With the help of pet Detective Kirilly Cull, Mr Smith filed a report with the police.
He praised the efforts of Sergeant Clint Drew for going “above and beyond” to help him.
“He was a bloody legend, he is the one that got the ball rolling for us, he even helped on his day off. I am so thankful for what Kirrily has done as well.”
Following an investigation police were able to reunite Mr Smith with Mary Jane on Wednesday morning, after removing her from a residence in Labrador.
No one has been charged over the incident.
Mr Smith said he was overjoyed to see Mary Jane again.
“I am so excited, I will take her to the vet to make sure she is OK and then we will get her some lamb’s hearts, which are her favourite.
“I just can’t believe someone could take her away from me for so long.”
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Officer-in-charge of Southport station Seargent Chris Smith praised Sgt Drew for his assistance.
“He is a very good sergeant who uses a direct level of communication and common sense to help all parties involved resolve the situation,” sgt Smith said.
“Our role is to communicate openly with the community and resolve problems without always having to engage a level of law enforcement.”
Ms Cull said dog-sitters declining to hand over family pets “has become pretty common”.
“People need to choose carefully who they plan to leave their pet with. People seem to take it upon themselves to keep them.”
Sgt Drew and Ms Cull were both involved in a similar case last month in which a pet corgi had been detained by pet-sitters.
Originally published as Beloved German shepherd Mary Jane finally reunited with Gold Coast owner Jamie Smith