A Tayside woman was left “devastated” when her two beloved dogs were found drowned in a septic tank.
Pamela Stewart had offered a £1,000 reward and launched a search party to find Storm and Max, her American cockadoodles, who went missing in Perthshire.
She raised fears that the pair had been stolen to be used as bait in dog fighting or to be sold on due to their valuable, designer breed. But the animals were discovered inside a septic tank on a new-build housing estate near Errol, close to where they vanished.
Pamela’s friend, Susan Gibb, who bred the dogs, said that despite the bad news, it was a relief to know they had not been stolen.
Susan, from Errol, said: “They were found in a septic tank in the middle of some waterworks near the new-build houses just outside Errol.
“Both dogs had drowned and Pamela is devastated. She feels so guilty because she let the dogs off the lead and then they disappeared. But it is not her fault, at all.
“At least now she has closure and we know that the dogs haven’t been taken away to be abused and tortured.
“I think if they hadn’t been found we would always have wondered what happened to them.”
Pamela had been walking Max and Storm who were brother and sister in the woods on the circular path between Errol and the Grange on Friday. They ran ahead of her and disappeared round a bend.
When they did not return, she spent three hours looking for them, but there was neither sight nor sound of them.
She then launched an appeal to find them through social media and a search party of 10 spent hours combing the countryside.
Susan added: “They are only 14 months old and had not been near water before, so they didn’t stand a chance.
“We really do appreciate everybody’s help in sharing the posts on Facebook and coming out to look for them after they went missing.”
A tribute posted from the Missing Pets Dundee and Angus group, which helped to publicise the appeal, said: “It is with a heavy heart that we inform you all that Storm and Max have been found under very sad circumstances. They were both pulled from the water and, sadly, had not survived.
“Their family would like to thank everyone who shared, looked and went out of their way to search for their babies.”