Clacton puppy found dead on railway line before being cremated

Blue the Great Dane went missing from a house near Clacton Century Cinema, in Pier Avenue, on August 21, after escaping from the garden.

The crafty canine is understood to have leapt over a 6ft-high fence just two hours after moving in with his besotted new 70-year-old owner.

Following his disappearance, a widespread search was launched by his granddaughter Sophie Baker, and Julia Jayne, Leah Ford and Clare Davis.

Tragically, after numerous sightings, Blue was eventually found on Monday afternoon on a railway line in Clacton near the Giles Crossing.

The group believes the poor pooch had been there for three days but was moved to the side of the tracks near a public footpath before being covered in tarpaulin.

After the discovery, they pushed Network Rail to retrieve the puppy as soon as possible but with the hope of being able to return him to his owner.

Upset - The dog owner's granddaughter Sophie Baker

On Wednesday, however, Sophie and the volunteer missing dog hunters were informed Blue had already been cremated and his ashes had been disposed of.

Sophie said: “I am absolutely fuming - we had a cremation sorted and a GoFundMe page in order to be able to get him home.

“I currently haven't told my grandad he's already been cremated but the overall thing about him getting out and passing away has absolutely heartbroken him.”

Leah, who is a ground searcher for missing dogs, says Network Rail should have acted quicker and informed them of their plan to cremate Blue before doing so.

She added: “I’m absolutely fuming because we followed the correct procedures but we kept getting fobbed off - and then they go and do this.

“I stressed to them so many times this was not just about getting the poor boy back to his family, it was a public matter too.

“If a child was to look at him it would have scarred them for life - this is not acceptable and it heartbreaking."

A Network Rail spokeswoman said: “I understand how upsetting this is for everyone involved and my sincere condolences are with the owner at this time.

“We have procedures in place when a dog is found on the rail line but unfortunately because of how badly decomposed the dog was on this occasion we could not return it to the owner.

“We accept that this could have been communicated better and we will review this case to improve our process going forward.”