KillarneyToday.com Exclusive
IT was a prolonged and harrowing saga but, thankfully, it has a wonderfully happy ending.
This is the story of a handsome hound that was lost and alone for several weeks but, unknown to the four-legged beauty, Killarney had its back.
The drama started shortly after Christmas when local dog lovers began to notice a distinctive brown and white dog wandering the roadways around the town at all times of the day and night.
It may have been abandoned but there was some speculation that it might have strayed from its pack at a post-Christmas hunt, although there was no hard evidence to prove that theory.
Efforts to befriend her – even with offers of food – proved futile as the cute canine was very obviously very timid and spooked and raced off whenever she was approached.
As concern for her welfare mounted, with weeks passing by without the dog having proper food or shelter, worried Killarney woman, Nicola Daly, set up a ‘Save the Hound’ Facebook page to create awareness of the dog’s plight and to encourage people to look out for her.
And then the big-hearted Killarney dog loving community sprang to action, organising searches by day and by night, sounding bugles used in hunts to try to lure the dog to safety and rallying the troops anytime she was spotted.
Vets were consulted but they advised against tranquilising the lost dog in case it was stunned and wandered in front of traffic before the drug had time to take effect.
Snatched photographs – some captured on CCTV – showed her walking the roads and streets by night, obviously in search of food and shelter, but repeated follow-up searches proved unsuccessful.
With some reports suggesting that the hound was limping badly, Facebook page founder Nicola, and her husband, Donal, decided to take it a step further and build a trap from wooden planks and heavy-duty twine in an attempt to bring her to safety.
And that’s what led to the very happy ending.
The trap was first located on the grounds of the former Pretty Polly factory – where the dog had earlier been spotted – but although another dog and a cat were safely ensnared before being released again, there was still no sign of the beautiful canine.
The trap – which was a simple mechanism with chunks of cooked chicken inside to entice the dog in – was then placed near the Circle K premises on Park Road and, sometime between late last night and early this Thursday morning, the plan finally worked.
Local businesswoman Mabel Counihan, of Fine Designs, was on her way to work at 8am today when she spotted the dog in the trap and she immediately alerted an overjoyed Nicola and Donal at their home near Two Mile School.
“We approached her very cautiously and slowly started petting her and she was so gentle,” a delighted Nicola told KillarneyToday.com.
“She was obviously very nervous but there was absolutely no aggression whatsoever, even though the poor thing must have been terrified,” she added.
Nicola promptly brought the dog – which wasn’t micro-chipped – to Ark Veterinary Clinic where vet Tom Brosnan did a full health check – free of charge. He discovered that the dog was little more than a year old and in great shape but in need of a little fattening up.
And that’s exactly what Nicola and Donal are now doing, having taken in a new lodger who is resting peacefully in the snug sitting room, taking occasional breaks between naps to tuck into a little more chicken and a few other tasty treats.
Perhaps not surprisingly, given who discovered her first thing this morning, the dog has been named Mabel and Nicola and Donal now hope to make their home her home and they look forward to tending to her every need.
Caring Nicola has thanked and praised all those who helped organise and highlight the campaign, particularly Norma O’Donoghue and Helen Duggan, and the concerned people of Killarney who kept a caring eye out for the dog now known as Mabel.
“Since I first heard about her plight, I became consumed by the whole thing, spending every spare minute searching for her. She’s a wonderful dog. She’s so sweet and gentle, even after all she’s been through.
“She’s a truly gentle soul and I’m so relieved this story has a happy ending,” Nicola said.
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