Lost dog went on incredible 40-mile journey for five weeks and even swam to an island before being found
A lost dog has been found after making an incredible 40-mile journey and even swimming to an island.
Amber, a five-year-old retriever cross, had been missing for 36 days when she was picked up by a boat crew as she tried to swim back to the mainland.
The rescue dog vanished from her foster home in Bramshaw in the New Forest on April 25.
In the following days there were 63 reported sightings of her in the National Park, with food stations were put out and cameras set up in a bid to locate her.
She somehow walked in a south westerly direction across the forest to the coast, ending up on Sandbanks in Poole.
Amber then doggy-paddled for one mile across Poole Harbour to reach Brownsea Island.
During her four days on the tiny island, she was befriended by one of its mere 30 residents who laid out food for her every night.
Amber then attempted to swim back to the mainland but was fortunately spotted by the crew of a passing ferry who initially mistook her for a seal.
Noticing she was struggling with the tide, the heroic crew turned the boat around before someone jumped into the water to help her.
Ethan Granta, a member of the crew, said: 'I then realised it was a dog and thought 'what's that doing out there?'
'You could see she was struggling so we thought we need to get her out otherwise she wouldn't have made it.'
Amber was checked out by a vet and, despite spending five weeks fending for herself, was left relatively unscathed.
Unsurprisingly, the young pet had lost a lot of weight and is now getting extra meals to gain it back before she can be considered for adoption.
Amber had previously been rescued as a street puppy in Qatar but had then spent most of her life living in a shelter there.
Kelly Parker, who runs KS Rescue, the dog rescue service Amber was brought to after arriving in the UK, said she could not believe how far Amber had travelled, describing her as 'remarkable'
She was later brought to the UK by KS Angels Rescue, an organisation run by husband and wife team Sam Collins, 38, and Kelly Parker, 36.
At the time of her disappearance, the young pup had been staying with foster carer Jess Wadsworth in Bramshaw who said she had no idea how she escaped from her home as she had eight foot-high deer fencing installed.
Ms Wadsworth said: 'We were really concerned because she had no knowledge of the UK, no one she had bonded with and she was just running from everyone.
'We were wondering how on earth we would ever get her back.'
Meanwhile Mr Collins said that during her time at the rescue centre Amber had not yet formed bonds with the staff and so often 'bolted' at an unbelievably fast speed, remarking: 'she was always moving faster than we were'.
He added: 'She was absolutely all over the place, she kept returning to where she went missing from and was moving in bigger and bigger circles.
'But then we had no sightings for a week before I got a call that she was on a boat.
'We know she entered the water at Sandbanks as we were sent a photo of her there. It is about a mile of swimming, which is just incredible.'
Ms Parker said she could not believe how far Amber had travelled, describing her as 'remarkable'.
She said: 'It is miraculous she did not get run over. We are absolutely over the moon that she is back.
'We took her to the vets and apart from being underweight, she was given a clean bill of health.'
Both Mr Collins and Ms Parker praised the response from residents across Hampshire and Dorset who assisted in the search for Amber.
The young pup will now be spending some time recovering from her extraordinary ordeal with her foster family, who hope she will slowly be able to build a tolerance to other people.
Ms Wadsworth also confirmed that the woman Amber befriended on Brownsea Island is 'in talks' with the pair about the possibility of adopting her.
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