Pet detective rescues cat trapped for six days

News imageJustine Langridge The image shows a woman smiling while posing with her black cat, who has amber eyes and is sitting in a basket.Justine Langridge
Ronnie, a British shorthair, went missing on 28 June after being hit by a car

A cat has been rescued by a pet detective and their dog after being hit by a car and trapped under a shipping container for six days.

Ronnie, a British shorthair from Middleton-on-Sea in West Sussex, went missing on 28 June after the accident and was unable to be tracked by owner Justine Langridge as the metal blocked his AirTag and tracking collar signal.

On the following Saturday, Molly, a trained cat-detection dog working with Colin Butcher, from The UK Pet Detectives agency, found Ronnie using her smell.

"It was also our wedding anniversary on the day he was found, so it was the best present ever!", Langridge said.

News imageColin J Butcher The image shows a man posing with his black dog; he is wearing a grey cap with "Musto" written on it, and a thick grey jacket. Behind them red leaves can be seen.Colin J Butcher
Butcher and Molly have worked together for seven years

Butcher and Molly, from near Wisborough Green, found the one-and-a-half-year-old cat on 11 July after two hours of searching and spent another two hours coaxing Ronnie out.

He was taken to the emergency vet where it was found he had a broken pelvis in two places and the top of his femur had snapped off, which he had surgery for.

Ronnie is recovering at home with his owners, who are now facing about £7,000 in costs.

Butcher said without Molly's help, Ronnie would not have made it.

He said: "I've worked with her for seven years now, nearly 500 cat recoveries, and every single time she makes [the] recovery.

"I'm still amazed as I was the very first time to see it."

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