Dog who was believed to be dead after being hit by a train makes miraculous recovery at Sussex vet practice

Ronnie fled from his garden after being scared by fireworks and had been missing for ten days when his owners were told a dog matching his description had been hit by a train.

His owner, Jo Wackett, an air hostess, was working away from home when the two-year-old Beagle escaped.

She said: “Ronnie isn’t usually scared of fireworks but there was a particularly loud bang and my partner, Grant, saw him scrambling over our gate, which was quite an effort as it’s fairly high.

“As soon as I found out he’d escaped I put posts on social media and was contacted by a train driver who saw Ronnie on the tracks and believes his train hit him as it rounded a bend.

"It happened close to our local station and when I sent him a photo of Ronnie, he was positive it was the dog he’d seen.

“The train driver was devastated, but I came off the phone with some closure about what had happened.”

Jo said she and her husband feared the worst after hearing this news and, ‘absolutely heartbroken and completely grieving for Ronnie’ told their daughter their pup ‘wasn’t ever coming home’.

However, a few days later, Jo received some unexpected news when a friend phoned to say they’d spotted Ronnie nearby.

She said: “We were driving to the coast to give our daughter a treat after such a tough time, but we turned around and rushed back towards home.

"After searching for a while, we called it a day as our other dog, Marley, was getting tired.

"Back home I found a note pushed through the letterbox saying someone had seen Ronnie in the local park and followed him home to our house. Because he was injured, they took him to the local vets.

“When we got there, Ronnie was so happy to see us. I sat on the floor and he put his head on my shoulder for a proper cuddle and he left it there for a couple of minutes.

"He was thin, covered in nasty cuts and his leg was badly broken, but he was alive and that was all that mattered.”

Due to the nature of Ronnie’s injuries, he was referred to Anderson Abercromby, a veterinary practice in Warnham, near Horsham, which specialises in orthopaedic surgery.

Jo, ‘delighted’ at the care her beloved dog received, added: “I’m so pleased that he was referred to Anderson Abercromby because the team are incredible.

As well as using their expertise to repair Ronnie’s fracture and make sure he’s got full use of his injured leg, we’ve felt supported and looked after the whole time Ronnie was in their care.

“We can tell Ronnie genuinely loves it there and every time we’ve visited for a check-up he has been happy and relaxed - his tail wags like mad and he strains at the lead to get in the building.

“After his ordeal he’s been more nervous of noises and he’s scared of the dark, but the team at Anderson Abercromby has given him so much reassurance and they’ve really shown their passion for animals when dealing with Ronnie.

“We’re so grateful for everything they’ve done for him.”

See also: Meet Bear the adorable Staffordshire Bull Terrier looking for a new home in Sussex – VIDEO

Meet Aleta – an adorable Dalmatian who is looking for a new home

Here are 24 adorable dogs looking for a loving home