16 months after a lost dog was found on the Australian island, but escaped capture

Lost more than a year on the remote Australian island, already alive, but has not been found and returned to its owner.

The miniature dachshund Valerie disappeared in November 2023 after escaping from the beach on Kangaroo Island in southern South Australia and running into the bushes of surrounding Stokes Bay.

Her owner, with the help of locals and staff at Kangala Wildlife Rescue, searched for their furry friends over the next five days before giving up and returning to New South Wales.

“It's like finding a needle in a haystack,” Valerie's boss Josh Fishlock said last week on Australia's Today Show. The couple had no choice but to search for their search and return to their mainland life.

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His partner, Georgia Gardner, told The Guardian that Valerie “is not an outside, rough dog.

On surveillance cameras, Kangala Wildlife found Valerie disappearing in the wilderness for more than 500 days, still wearing a pink collar and living.

“No one thinks a small dachshund like Valerie will survive alone in the wild, but more than 12 months after her disappearance, regular reports started with about a dachshund dog, about 15 kilometers from Stokes Bay,” the animal rescue agency said in a Facebook post on March 21.

But despite video evidence of her whereabouts and multiple sightings based on first-hand accounts, the elusive Wiener is hard to determine.

On March 27, a Kangala rescuer reported that this allowed the team to narrow the search area, adding that they can now feed Valerie and have cameras installed to track her movements.

“She looks really healthy,” he confirmed in a separate video on Kangala's Facebook page.

Volunteers and staff are now on the task of capturing Valerie and returning her to the master.

“We now know Valerie is still alive. She runs as the first sign of a human or a vehicle, and despite the best efforts of dedicated island locals, Valerie can't catch it,” the original post continued.

“We are using the surveillance and various methods of trapping and attraction in the area she was last trying to take home. It's a big dog and we will need the help of the public to report any sightings and a lot of luck,” the post said.

According to the American Kennel Club, dachshunds are not designed for distance running, jumping, or swim vigorously, but “anything.”

It describes them as smart and alert as the bark of a big dog. Daschendes also made excellent watchdogs and independent hunters of dangerous prey.

“They may be brave and frivolous and a little stubborn, but their cute nature and unique appearance have won the world of millions of hearts,” the Kennel Club website said.

Meanwhile, Kangala Rescue said it will provide updates and photos as unlikely rescue missions continue.

& Copy 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.