Holidaymakers turn around in airport and fly home to search for missing dog

Alan and Hannah Harvey had just landed in Budapest when they heard their beloved rescue dog Scout had gone missing

In an episode reminiscent of the classic Christmas movie, Home Alone, a Co Down family who had just landed in Budapest for a weekend break turned around in the airport and flew home after learning that the dog they’d left behind had gone missing.

Alan and Hannah Harvey touched down in the Hungarian capital on Saturday, having left their rescue dog Scoop in the care of family members for the duration of their holiday.

Just as they made their way through the airport, they received a call to say Scoop was missing, having bolted through a garden gate after being spooked by a loud noise.

“There was no question of continuing with our break,” said Alan. “We literally turned around in the airport and started looking for flights back to Belfast.

“We managed to get a flight to Manchester overnight on Saturday and got a flight to Belfast early on Sunday and drove straight to Millisle to join the search for Scoop.”

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Alan and Hannah adopted their dog last summer, and say there was an “instant bond” with her, and they knew they just had to bring her home.

“On Saturday, while we were just landing in Budapest for a weekend break, she got spooked and literally bolted through a garden gate. We’d left her with family members who love her as much as we do and she’s familiar with them,” said Alan.

“But she panicked over a noise and stormed through the garden gate before it could be closed. She barrelled past my parents and they ran after her but she was too fast. They searched all night and made a dreaded phone call to me to say what had happened. They’re devastated even though they know it was an accident. It all happened in a moment.

“Scoop has been spotted a couple of times in the Millisle area but it’s not her normal place to be so she is unfamiliar with her surroundings and has no way of knowing where she is.

“The community has been brilliant and people have been out looking for her. The team at Lost Paws NI are coming with a drone to help us search for her,” he added.

“We are hoping she has hunkered down somewhere in a field and is just too scared to move. We are all distraught and we’ve been searching night and day but so far without luck.

“Some people might think it’s silly to give up a holiday for a dog but she's a member of our family and we promised to look after her from the moment we got her - and that’s what we are doing. We would do it for any family member, dog or human.

“There was no question of continuing with our break. We literally turned around in the airport and started looking for flights back to Belfast. We managed to get a flight to Manchester overnight on Saturday and got a flight to Belfast early on Sunday and drove straight to Millisle to join the search for Scoop.

“We would ask everyone who is in the Millisle area and the countryside around there to please keep an eye out for our wee Scoop. She’s a timid little dog and so it’s probably better to call the team coordinating the searches at Lost Paws NI on 02890 406054 and give them a location, rather than trying to approach her.

“We’re afraid she will run again and get even more lost. Please help us if you can,” he added.

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