THE search is continuing to find a beloved family pet which has been missing for more than a month.

Fern, a golden cocker spaniel, went missing from Low Chantry Farm Boarding Kennels, in Middleton Tyas, North Yorkshire, on Sunday, August 24 after slipping her lead and running off.

There have been sightings of the eight-year-old dog in the Barton area, but she is still missing.

Her owners, Kevin Dawson and Sarah Clement-Dawson, have since held countless searches to find their pet, and a Facebook page called Help Find Fern has also attracted more than 1,200 likes.

Mrs Clement-Dawson said: “We are not ready to believe she is not local despite there being no recent sightings.

“We do not know her whereabouts but someone must. The unknown is killing us and we are struggling to live with the guilt that Fern must have thought we abandoned her when we left her at the kennels.”

She added: “She is not just a pet to us - she is an enormous part of our family and really is our eldest daughter.

“Our three-year-old daughter, Elena, is also not sleeping well and our other dog is very quiet. It has been the most horrendous nine weeks of our lives. We are more than devastated.”

A reward is being offered for the safe return of Fern.

Anyone with any information, or who has recently bought a dog in good faith, can all 07975-594-306 or 01325-374373 or email sarah.clement-dawson@live.co.uk