The pet was claimed to be ‘distressed’ and wandering alone for half an hour, then taken in by the local beach shack owner and to a local vet – but it was all a misunderstanding
Bo, a brown and white Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, was spotted seemingly in distress in the middle of the afternoon on Porthpean Beach(Image: Porthpean Beach Shak)
The owner of a dog seen seemingly panting and pacing alone on a popular beach in searing heat has come out to explain what happened as a “misunderstanding”.
Bo, a brown and white Cavalier King Charles spaniel, was said to be spotted in distress in the middle of the afternoon on Porthpean Beach, near St Austell as temperatures soared to more than 25C.
As concerns grew yesterday (Tuesday, May 26) for the welfare of the dog, Paige, who runs the Porthpean Beach Shak, put out an appeal seeking the dog’s owners and soon took him in after customers reported him running across the beach for hours, reportedly since 10.30am, for about 30 minutes.
Bo was later taken to Penmellyn Vets in St Austell who posted on their Facebook page: “Little lost King Charles spaniel is safe with our team at St Austell. This little guy was found on Porthpean beach but unfortunately his microchip is not registered.”
The vets later updated their post saying Bo had been reunited with its owners and was safe and well.
Bo’s owner, contacted CornwallLive to put the record straight, insisting that the dog was never in danger from the heat and that it is microchipped – of which she has provided proof – contrary to what some people have assumed and claimed.
Following our original story, many people commented about people taking dogs to the beach in hot weather.
Bo’s owner, who asked not to be named, said: “We also genuinely understand that people acted out of concern for Bo and with good intentions. We believe in trying to assume the best of others’ intentions, and we had hoped the same grace might have been extended to us before assumptions and accusations escalated online.
“The beach shack owner has since clarified publicly that she acted based on information being given to her at the time by multiple concerned members of the public who believed Bo had accidentally been left behind, and that she never intended for the situation to escalate online in the way that it did. We appreciate that people were trying to help reunite Bo with his family.
“Unfortunately, our number was shared without our permission and we have since received harassment and threats online and by phone. What began as a stressful misunderstanding involving our family dog rapidly became extremely distressing and public.”
She explained how Bo became separated from its owners on the beach: “Our extended family was at Porthpean Beach from approximately 9.30am to 1.30pm.
“Bo had access to shade under our large Sport-Brella, water, a cooling mat and the sea throughout. He is very familiar with the beach and often wanders independently before returning to us.
“A misunderstanding occurred as our large group split up between Porthpean, Duporth and home. We immediately searched the area once we realised he was not with any family member.”
She added: “Our family was still actively present on the beach during the period described online. Reports that he had been wandering abandoned from around 10am are inaccurate, and this ultimately arose from a misunderstanding during a staggered family departure from the beach rather than abandonment or deliberate neglect.”
About the issue of microchipping Bo, she added: “The veterinary practice have now also confirmed via email what we had been saying throughout, namely that Bo was in fact fully microchipped and registered, but that they themselves did not have an account with the Protected Pet database and therefore could not directly retrieve our details.
“We appreciate their clarification as this appears to have been a genuine issue of database access and communication rather than Bo not being registered.
“More broadly, we do think this situation highlights a wider issue around the fragmented nature of pet microchip databases in the UK and the confusion that can arise from this. Hopefully something constructive can come from that discussion, including consideration of a more unified and accessible national system.”
Bo’s owner added: “What was meant to be a quiet family holiday to rest and recover has instead become deeply upsetting for our family. We do not even feel particularly welcome now on a beach where we have spent many happy summers over the years.”
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