The owner of a blind black Labrador who was missing for three days has revealed how he feared for the dog’s life – before being reunited with her with the help of a drone.
The 11-year-old pooch, named Molly, disappeared on Friday October 20 and owner Mike Herridge, 58, feared he would never see the beloved family dog again.
But after his oldest daughter Natalie, 23, called UK charity Drone to Home, the pooch was located in just two hours and brought home safely.
Speaking to MailOnline, Mr Herridge said: ‘To be honest, I didn’t think we were going to find her alive. I started looking in ditches or holes she could’ve fallen into. She’s completely blind and isn’t particularly mobile.’
But, revealing his relief at finding her, he added: ‘I was standing near the drone operator who said ”I think I might’ve found your dog”, so I looked on his screen and said, ”Yep that’s her!”’
Footage captured by the drone shows Molly roaming around a paddock in Tissington, Derbyshire, before Mr Herridge pulls up and the two are finally reunited.
‘I was so happy we found her, it was a really emotional moment,’ Mr Herridge said, adding: ‘It was a big relief for the family, but I have no idea where she went.
‘When she heard my voice she started jumping around like a puppy. I held her and thought, “I can’t believe I’m picking you up right now.”‘
Adorable moment drone helps missing blind dog and owner reunite
The 11-year-old pooch, named Molly, disappeared on Friday October 20 and owner Mike Herridge feared he would never see the beloved family dog again
Sad and alone: A drone found a blind dog called Molly who was missing for three days. The 11-year-old black Labrador was located in a field in Tissington, Derbyshire
Footage captured the adorable moment Molly and Mr Herridge reunite
Mr Herridge said: ‘My daughter got in touch with Drone to Home and we had someone come to the property to help search for Molly’
Dairy farmer Mr Herridge said his daughter Natalie raised the alarm and realised Molly was missing on October 20 between 4pm and 5pm
In the drone footage Molly can be seen wagging her tail as she recognises Mr Herridge’s voice before the two walk back to the car together.
Dairy farmer Mr Herridge said his daughter Natalie raised the alarm and realised Molly was missing.
‘I thought she had to be around somewhere but she never turned up,’ the father-of-three said.
The whole family searched for hours in the rain that evening but had no luck.
‘It was dark, stormy, we couldn’t see anything so we called off the search until the morning,’ he said.
They continued the search their property on Saturday with the help of eight others but their precious dog was nowhere to be seen.
The family live on a huge 800-acre property with 350 dairy cows, so Molly could have been anywhere and without the drone it could’ve taken days to find her.
As the hours ticked away, Mr Herridge started to lose hope and had ‘given up’ on finding Molly alive.
Mr Herridge said: ‘My daughter got in touch with Drone to Home and we had someone come to the property to help search for Molly.’
With the trusty help of the drone viewing the farm from above, Molly was quickly found.
After looking at the drone Mr Herridge knew exactly where she was on the farm and raced over in his car to go get her.
In the end, she was only 600m away from the family home.
Pictured: Molly reunited with her friend Murphy at home. The family live on a huge 800-acre property with 350 dairy cows, so Molly could have been anywhere
Mr Herridge leads Molly to the safety of the car and puts her in the front passenger seat to take her back to the family. In the end, she was only 600m away from the house
Reunited at last: The dog can be seen wagging her tail as Mr Herridge gives her a big hug
Mr Herridge noticed Molly’s paws were ‘red raw, blistered and bruised’ and she had lost a lot of weight over the last three days.
‘It’s kind of like a real life Lassie story about how Molly returned home. We’re all so pleased she’s back,’ he said.
Drone To Home CEO Phil James said Molly’s owner thought they would never find Molly ever again and feared she may have died.
The team was called on the third day of Molly’s disappearance and she was swiftly found.
Phil said he was moved by the touching moment after watching the video captured.
He said: ‘I don’t get emotional very often but the lab did bring a tear to my eye I must admit. I’m so happy for the owners to see them overjoyed.’
He began the mission in 2019 with just himself and one drone.
‘I self-funded it up until registering as a charity on April 29, 2022, and to date we have reunited 2,487 dogs, three ponies, an emu, skunk and nine cows,’ he said.
‘We receive on average about 40 calls and messages a day through our virtual call centre and we have 11 trained volunteers that answer the phones.
‘We all love what we do and have the best job in the world.’
Drone to Home has helped find thousands of animals who have wandered a little too far away from home.
Drone to Home has helped find thousands of animals who have wandered a little too far away from home
On another occasion two whippets (pictured) ran off but were found just six hours later thanks to the charity
On another occasion two whippets ran off but were found just six hours later thanks to the help of the charity.
The owner said she ‘aged about ten years’ in the hours waiting to be reunited with her missing four-legged friends.
‘I feel for every dog owner who goes through what we did and have no hesitation in recommending Done to Home. They deserve a medal,’ the owner said.
A spaniel named Carly also went missing and left her owner feeling ‘out of their mind’ with worry. But the dog was found three days later via drone.
A spaniel named Carly also went missing and left her owner feeling ‘out of their mind’ with worry. But the dog was found three days later via drone
Pictured: Max the Dalmatian who was found via Drone to Home