Lost dog: Owner of blind and deaf dog missing for 12 days trying to bring his best friend home for Christmas

Hundreds have joined an owner's desperate search for his missing senior Labrador, as he fights to “bring his best friend home” before Christmas.

Robert Sands’ 15-year-old dog Todd, whose advanced age has left him mostly blind and deaf, disappeared from Blantyre train station in Scotland on 7 December after he was let out to use the toilet. He and Todd have been an inseparable pair since Mr Sands responded to an ad on Gumtree seeking to rehome a dog nine years ago, with the yellow lab regularly accompanying his owner to work as a newspaper delivery driver.

Devastated by Todd’s disappearance, his owner has been desperately searching for him for 12 days now – and the local community have banded together to help. A Facebook page called ‘HELP US FIND TODD’ has been launched, and has reached a staggering 800 members, sharing tips and potential sightings.

Bute despite the massive community effort, Todd has still not been found – and Mr Sands told SWNS he is desperate to have his best friend back home before Christmas. "When I first got him, we’d always go out in the van together, and now he comes to work with me all the time," he said.

“We had gone to Blantyre train station because it’s one of our regular stops on our delivery route – and this was one of the locations where I’d let Todd out to use the toilet. On that particular Thursday, I got him out, did the delivery and changed his bedding – and then I turned back around, and he wasn’t there. I looked around and I couldn’t see him, and I went into a panic," he continued.

Mr Sands said Todd had "a bit of separation anxiety", which made his disappearance very out of character. “Todd is such an old boy – he’s fifteen. He’s going blind – he has cataracts, and he’s going deaf as well. He’s got mobility issues and underlying medical issues as well."

He believed Todd might have gotten himself lost or stuck somewhere, or somebody had picked him up. Although he sought help from the police, 101 operators informed him that the police could not help with missing animals. He then took to Facebook to appeal for information – and members of the local community quickly began searching for Todd.

Mr Sands said he was deeply grateful for the well-wishes and support he has received. “The outpouring from the local community has been phenomenal... To the people that are searching for Todd, I can’t thank them enough. I’m hoping that we get what we all want, and that’s for him to come home soon.

“He’s loved, he’s worried about, and he’s missed. It’s like a big part of me is missing," he continued. “To some people, a dog is a dog – but Todd isn’t just a dog to me, he’s my best friend."

If anyone has any information or has seen a dog which might be Todd, Mr Sands urged them to message the Facebook group here. “Don’t approach the dog, just take a picture and send it in and we’ll have a look and see if it’s possible that it’s Todd," he said.

He also had a message, in case somebody had taken Todd. “All I ask is that if somebody has got Todd, please get in touch so we can bring him home. I just want my best friend back.”