A mother and son are devastated after their beloved dog disappeared in Cardenden but illness is restricting their search attempts.  

Adam Stevens, from Cowdenbeath, took Couter, a Saint Bernard and Rottweiler cross to his mum Donna’s house in Cardenden on Sunday, February 5. He was walking the eight-month old puppy in a play park on Cardenbarns Road at around 6pm when Couter pulled on the lead and snapped it before running off. The dog is not familiar with Cardenden, which is a major worry for the family.

Donna and Adam are at their wit’s end. Whilst doing everything they can to find Couter, they are restricted - Donna has mobility problems and agoraphobia; whilst Adam suffers from mental illness.

Distraught Donna said: “The thing that really, really gets to me is he went missing the day after my son’s 21^st birthday. Adam is suffering from depression and with the dog going missing it’s just awful. A couple of weeks before, my father’s dog died and he had been a big family pet. Everything’s just building up and up.”

Donna, who described Couter as “a big affectionate lump”, explained how frustrating the situation is for her and Adam. She said: “I’m sitting here and thinking if someone sees him in Cardenden and calls me, by the time I get Adam on the phone and he gets here, the dog would have gone.

“We did start the first couple of weeks calling round places. I called the rail people because there’s a rail track near us. We called kennels, Lost Dogs Scotland, everywhere but we couldn’t keep doing that because the phone bill cost a fortune! I’m running out of options and I don’t know what to do.

“We’ve been posting flyers to as many local groups with a public notice board to try and get this out but I can’t actually check if they get posted because it’s hard for me to get out and about. We’ve heard nothing and we’ve seen nothing.

“At the end of the track near the play park where Couter went missing, there’s a wooded area so initially I was worried that he might have been shot by one of the farmers.

He’s such a big dog but how he can just vanish is beyond me. It was so windy and rainy that night so he might not have heard us shout over the wind and the rain.

“My main concern is that he had never been out in this area. I’m doing my head in with worry at what could have happened to him, thinking of all the worst scenarios. We’ve got the A92 behind us so he could have ended up anywhere.”

Couter is described as sandy brown with a black muzzle and white chest markings. He has a full tail and is microchipped. He is large for an eight-month-old and may have grown since he disappeared.

It is unknown if Couter’s collar snapped when he escaped or it was just the lead loop so he may still be wearing a double-studded black collar. If you think you have seen Couter, please contact Donna on 01592 721730.