Emotional reunion as famed missing dog Valerie is found safe

She spent 529 days as an accidental runaway on Kangaroo Island off the coast of South Australia. Now, 11 days after her valiant* rescue, Valerie the miniature sausage dog has been reunited with her beloved owners.

Georgia Gardner and Josh Fishlock made the trip down from Albury in regional NSW on Monday night and said they were “so happy” to see their “princess” after 17 long months.

Speaking exclusively to The Advertiser newspaper after their long-awaited reunion, the couple said it was “incredible” to see Valerie again after she escaped from their campsite in Stokes Bay on November 13, 2023.

“I bawled my eyes out and just seeing her come up and wag her tail and bark, I’m speechless,” Ms Gardner said. “Just so much emotion.”

While many online followers of Valerie’s tale suspected she may not warm to humans after life “on the lam*”, the complete opposite was true. The tiny pup gave her humans all the kisses and cuddles they had been waiting for.

“We were very nervous coming in today but the reaction was just priceless, it could not have been scripted,” Mr Fishlock said.

Valerie is just as Ms Gardner and Mr Fishlock remember but she has gained 1.8kg of muscle and become “more open to people”.

“She has definitely grown and put on some lean muscle,” Ms Gardner said.

It was the couple’s first time back on the island since Valerie’s campsite disappearance. Tuesday’s reunion is helping them leave behind their sad memories of the popular tourist destination.

“We were on the ferry across and we were just looking at each other like, ‘I can’t believe it, we’re back here’ because we kind of came to the conclusion that we were never coming back,” Ms Gardner said.

The nearly three-year-old dachshund* has been living with her rescuers at Kangala Wildlife Rescue since her safe recapture. Co-directors and volunteers Jared and Lisa Karran helped to readjust Valerie to the life of a pet.

Valerie’s owners said they were “so grateful” for the charity’s help in not only finding Valerie but also looking after her while they juggled the logistics of travelling to Kangaroo Island.

“When Lisa called (to say Valerie had been found), I was at work and Josh was away and we couldn’t just drop-of-a-hat drive straight back,” Ms Gardner said.

“Especially for Valerie’s care and decompressing, it was really good for her to spend the time here, for them to look at her behaviour (and for her) to be introduced slowly (to) everything.

“All these lovely people have put in hours of time, hours of effort … and for them to catch her and us just take that away, we want them to give her some pats, experience how she is … and see why we missed her and why everyone’s been putting themselves through this.”

Valerie and her owners will spend the next few days on the island, with Ms Gardner and Mr Fishlock hoping to thank the many individuals who helped bring their family back together.

It will be a “very tearful” goodbye for the Kangala Wildlife Rescue team who have been completely won over by the adorable dog.

“It’s been a real ride … seeing the reaction of Valerie today, seeing her mum and dad was awesome,” Mr Karran said.

“It makes everything we have all been through worthwhile.”

The famous sausage dog will be driven back to Albury at the end of the week, with plans already in place for her homecoming.

“We are going to continue conversing with Lisa and we’ve talked to pet behaviourists* just about how to integrate (Valerie) back into our house and our chaotic little family,” said Ms Gardner, who has two other dogs and a cat.

“The biggest thing at the moment is Valerie’s mental health,” Mr Fishlock added.

With the family now looking forward to beginning their next chapter, Ms Gardner and Mr Fishlock said Valerie’s story is one of “hope” and a reminder to “count on each other”.

“To anyone who has ever lost a dog or is going through a difficult time, if Valerie can survive in the bush for 529 days, then you too can get through what you’re going through and make it out the other side, happy and tail-wagging.”

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GLOSSARY

• valiant: showing courage and determination in a difficult situation when hope seems lost
• on the lam: while this expression is used most to describe a fugitive, a suspected criminal trying to avoid being caught by police, it does also more generally running away, hiding and avoiding capture
• dachshund: small dog with a long body and short legs, originally of German origin
• animal behaviourist: professionals trained in animal psychology who studies animals and applies scientific principles to understand, predict, and modify their behaviour

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1. QUICK QUIZ
2. Valerie became an accidental runaway while holidaying with her owners on what island?
3. How many days was Valerie living “on the run” after being separated from her owners?
4. How many additional days did her owners have to wait before being reunited with Valerie?
5. What is the name of the organisation that rescued her?
6. What other pets will Valerie be living with once she gets home to Albury in NSW?

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CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. What would Valerie write?
Rewrite this story from Valerie’s point of view for Dogs News.

Time: allow at least 45 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

2. Extension
What steps do you think that wildlife rescuers should take when they rescue a dog like Valerie to help them settle back home with their owners? Write a list. Next step, write sentences explaining why it would help Valerie.

Time: allow at least 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

VCOP ACTIVITY
Vocabulary recycle
There is some vivid vocabulary being used in the article, and I am not just talking about the glossary words. Go through the article and highlight the high-level language that you are impressed by in yellow.

See if you can borrow two of these wow words to reuse in your own way.

Remember vocabulary is a great way to connect with the audience, but you need to think about who your audience is so you make great word choices.

Who will the audience be in your recycled sentences?