Fresh hope 500 days after pup goes missing in bushland

There is fresh hope this morning for the owners of a pint-sized sausage dog which vanished on Kangaroo Island in 2023.

Josh Fishlock and his partner were camping in the area that November with little Valerie, when she escaped her pen and ran off into the bushland during a visit to a nearby beach.

"We spent probably five days of the rest of our trip looking for her, but without any luck unfortunately," the Albury local told Today.

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"We had the help of Kangala Wildlife Rescue, who assisted us in trying to find her, but eventually we had to come back to our jobs on the mainland."

It's been almost two years, but Josh hasn't given up hope he and Valerie will one day be reunited.

Josh said in the months since Valerie disappeared, there have been reported sightings of her - but she apparently gets skittish if someone approaches her and does another runner.

"We were initially a bit sceptical of all the sightings, then only probably three weeks ago, we received a photo from one of the locals and that sparked a lot of hope in us," he said.

"It's given us nearly 100 per cent certainty that she's still alive."

Hear the full chat with Josh in the video above