A dachshund that sparked a major search after escaping onto the M4 has been safely found, with her relieved Highbridge owner praising volunteers for what she described as a “miracle” rescue.
Two‑year‑old Mabel slipped her collar at Leigh Delamare services on Friday while her owners, Lucy Rogers and Jordan Goss, were travelling from Lowestoft to their new home in Highbridge.
The dog ran towards oncoming traffic on the busy motorway, prompting a frantic chase and a huge search effort.
“I pretty much blacked out,” said Lucy. “I was just screaming. I didn’t even know what to do.”
Jordan and several motorists ran along the hard shoulder trying to reach Mabel, but the frightened dachshund disappeared from sight.
The couple spent the rest of the day searching the surrounding area before calling in volunteers from DroneSAR for Lost Dogs.
A team of drone pilots worked through the night using thermal imaging to scan fields and hedgerows near where Mabel was last seen. She was eventually spotted on Saturday morning near a livery yard in Kington St Michael, north of Chippenham.
Later that evening, guided by a drone pilot and a volunteer on the phone, Lucy crossed a waterlogged field and found Mabel sheltering in a hedgerow.
“I got down to the floor and started saying Mabel’s favourite words,” she said. “I threw some chicken on the ground but she ran straight past it, jumped on me and started licking my face. She was going crazy.”
Lucy described the rescue as “literally a miracle”, adding: “I couldn’t have done it without them.”
DroneSAR volunteer Caroline Coward, who supported the search, said the operation had been “really, really rewarding”, especially given the dangers Mabel faced near the motorway.
“You never know what the outcome is going to be,” she said. “But this one was lovely… it makes it all worthwhile.”
