100-mile Miracle as stolen puppy found in Birmingham park

The young puppy, named Miracle, is a crossbreed between a Jack Russell, Chihuahua and Japanese Chin, and was spotted wandering around alone in a park in Kings Heath by a member of the public, who then took her to White Cross Vets.

The veterinary team carried out a full check and scanned her microchip, which then alerted them to the fact that Miracle had been stolen two weeks earlier from the Fenland village of Doddington, in Cambridgeshire, when she was just nine weeks old.

Miracle was part of a litter of puppies that were being sold by owner Clare Bradshaw.

Two people arrived at Clare’s home, posing as potential buyers, and stole the puppy in broad daylight. Clare then launched a Facebook campaign which was shared thousands of times.

After being reunited with the puppy, who was named Miracle because she was not breathing when she was born, Clare has now decided to keep her as a pet and Cambridgeshire Police are investigating the theft.

Peter Dickson, from White Cross Vets in Kings Heath, said: “It’s a mystery how Miracle ended up in Kings Heath after going missing two weeks earlier and almost 100 miles away in Cambridgeshire. We’ll probably never find out what happened to her during that time but thankfully she was healthy, if a little on the thin side, after her ordeal.

"However, it was thanks to her microchip that we were able to reunite her so quickly with her rightful owner.

“When we scan a microchip, it gives us a unique reference number, that we use to obtain the owner’s details from a database. However, if the details are out of date, because the owner has moved home or changed their telephone number, we then have no way of contacting them, and it is a common problem.

"The pandemic and so many people working from home has helped to drive huge demand for puppies and it’s vitally important that all pet owners ensure the contact details registered against their pet’s microchip are up to date.”

Clare said: “After Miracle was stolen, it was a hugely worrying time. I posted about it on Facebook and when I saw the number of shares, I knew there was a chance, albeit a slim one, that we might see her again. However, as the weeks passed, I began to lose hope.

“When I got the call from White Cross Vets, saying that she had been found, and was safe and well, I couldn’t believe it. I was very emotional, as were the team at White Cross Vets when I told them about the circumstances. We’re delighted to have her back and we’re very grateful to everyone who helped along the way.”