A dramatic rescue was launched in a Perthshire village when a dog tumbled 30ft down a riverbank.
Elderly pooch Lucy’s disappearance led to a frantic search by owners Bob and Helen Brawn.
They were eventually alerted to Lucy’s whereabouts by the barking of their other pet, Mollie.
They found she was at the bottom of the banks of the river Ardle at Bridge of Cally and were unable to reach her.
Firefighters equipped with heat-seeking sensors from Perth’s rope rescue team assisted by two crews from Blairgowrie then swung into action to rescue the stricken pet.
The 12-year-old dog is now relaxing at home, apparently none the worse for her ordeal. Helen, who runs the village Post Office, said: “Having let both our dogs out for their last constitutional of the night, only one dog returned.
“We quickly established she had slid down our 30ft bank to the river below.
“Two firemen went down the bank on the opposite side of the river and used a heat-sensing camera to locate her.
“It was decided that they would send a fireman down the bank on a rope with a harness. Luckily, Lucy was safe and in one piece she even picked up a stick for the young fireman, who played with her until they were ready to make their assent.
“Lucy, whilst a little stressed, was very happy to get to the top; it could have been much worse if the river had been in full flow there is no doubt that she would have been a goner.”
Helen’s husband Bob joked that the border collie has been “put on probation” from her role as the Post Office dog. “She’s been court-martialled and she’s lost her biscuit rights,” he said.
“However, she’s still alive and that’s the most important thing.”
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesman confirmed they attended the incident on Thursday night. He said: “We received a call at 10.38pm. A woman had been walking her dog along the side of the embankment.
“It was very steep and would have been very perilous if the woman had tried to get the dog herself.”