A ROMANIAN rescue dog who now lives in Clydebank is back home safe and sound after being missing for more than two weeks.

Towser was the very first dog that Ruff Start Rescue UK saved from horrible conditions abroad and he was adopted by Mary McCulloch of Faifley.

The group was set up in January by Louise Gardner and Emma Bernard to rescue dogs from Romania – and more than 115 dogs have been brought to safety with 101 of them being adopted into new homes.

Towser had been abandoned at an awful public shelter in Orastie. He was too old to work and was surplus to requirements.

He was described by Louise as being “so shut down that he didn’t move from his wooden bed”.

On Friday, August 23, Towser went missing from his dog sitter in Milngavie when owner Mary was on holiday.

Determined to get the pooch back, Louise took to social media to get help. It was believed that Towser was trying to head back to his own home in Faifley.

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The team at Ruff Start and Lost Dogs Glasgow done their very best to find the missing pup during the 16 days he was lost, as well as members of the public sharing any sightings of him.

Louise said: “Trail cameras were placed in key locations with food stations, a group of us spreading out and spotting to see this clever boy. We used torches so bright but with a green light that doggos can’t see to search the undergrowth and scan the fields.

“We even had a fright one morning when the cameras were missing. It turned out the greenkeeper of the golf course had taken them to the police station as he thought they were dodgy.

“Unfortunately, there wasn’t much footage of Towser but some cheeky foxes and cats having a right good scran of his food.”

“Once the ladies at Lost Dogs Glasgow were able to narrow down his route and times of sightings, we sat in place and watched. There he was, in and out the bushes, running on the very busy roundabout which seemed to be a beacon for him and also the halfway point from Milngavie to Faifley.”

With his owner on holiday and Towser being very timid, a plan was put in place to catch him including his bed, food, traps, and using parts of Mary’s jacket that was ripped up.

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Her scent lured him in but the team had no luck catching him.

Mary arrived back in Glasgow on September 7 and she went home, dumped her suitcases and headed to meet the team.

Louise added: “We walked a bit in the hope Towser would pick up her scent but decided to call it a night at silly o’clock.

“I think most of us had only just got in the door when a message popped up on our group chat from Mary saying, ‘I’ve got him’.

“She had driven home and guess who was standing at the end of her road? What are the chances? He had found his own way home and must have known his mammy was back.

“It was time for his adventure to be over and what an adventure it was. Mary said he just stoated in and plonked himself down like nothing had happened. What a boy.”

Mary told the Post: “I’m over the moon at Towser being home. I couldn’t believe I found him that night. It’s as if he knew I was back home, what a clever dog he is.

“Louise and Marion were great at keeping me updated. I was online constantly checking for updates while I was away.”