Sausage dog sneaks onto bus alone and takes 18-mile trip to seaside

Michelle Ballard was sent into a blind panic when her beloved dachshund Frank vanished from their home in Colchester, Essex.

She had no idea the mischievous creature had strolled down the road and hopped un-noticed onto a bus to the seaside town of Clacton.

A distraught Michelle hastily arranged a search party with friends, fellow dog walkers and schoolchildren to find her precious pet.

Meanwhile Frank was minding his own business on the number 61 bus, until a fellow passenger noticed him and decided to intervene.

The Good Samaritan chatted to the driver and agreed to take the four-year-old sausage dog to his home in Clacton.

Later that night his family spotted a Facebook appeal for the pet’s whereabouts and were able to arrange a reunion.

A relieved Michelle said: ‘I thought a bus driver would have noticed and not let him on but maybe he boarded when someone was paying.

‘Luckily, there was a kind gentleman called Michael who offered to take him back to his own home in Clacton.

‘He took him in for the evening and was going to take him to the vet in the morning but his family spotted the post on Facebook. My partner Jonathan picked him up at about 7pm.’

Frank is now safe and sound with his best friends Charlie, a two-year-old sausage dog, and Freddie, his two-year-old human brother.

Michelle added: ‘He is a valuable dog and you hear some horrible stories about situation like this. We were so lucky it was such a kind man who picked him up.

‘It is completely out of character for Frank. It is the first time he has done anything like this in his life.’