Devoted man heartbroken after dog goes missing near Hayling Island Ferry

Phil Brown,66, was recently diagnosed with throat cancer and his precious pooch has been his emotional support since being told he was ill - but sadly the female Jack Russel Terrier Cross has gone missing.

Gerty, a rescue dog, has been missing since December 3 where she vanished from the Hayling Island area.

There has been one potential sighting of the dog on Whale Island, and Phil’s daughter, Linsey, trawled the area, looking for any trace of hope of finding his companion, but there has still been no sign of her.

Phil currently lives in a van in Eastney and he has been wracked with worry for his dog, and is asking if anyone sees her to get in contact with him as soon as possible in a bid to try and reunite the pair.

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Linsey said: ‘A year ago to the day, he was sat in my front room and he started having mini strokes and he was made to retire early last year due to these mini strokes. He got Gerty to keep him company because he wasn’t going to work anymore and she came from my sister in Blackpool.

‘He got her and they fell in love with each other and he loves her and she has been his companion since.

‘She goes everywhere with him and she never wonders, she never goes anywhere without him.’

The day that Gerty went missing, some of Phil’s friends visited him in their camper van, but he took a turn and had to go to bed.

He asked his friends to put Gerty back in his van when they left, and although they did this, they failed to shut the door properly so when Phil awoke, he could not find his precious pup.

Linsey added: ‘He is constantly in pain, he is struggling, he doesn’t want to get out of bed and he said he doesn’t want to fight cancer without her.’

They are asking that if people spot her to call 07935 225786 or 07946 241010, and to not shout at her as she is friendly but will be scared.