A couple of years ago, on a Friday morning, I found myself standing at the edge of a busy roundabout watching a collie dart between cars.

It was clearly someone’s pet. Well groomed, collar on, but lacking in road sense and clearly terrified by the blaring horns and fast-moving traffic.

I had been out walking my own dog, Ferdy, when I spotted it. Instinct took over and, keeping a careful distance, I tried to coax it away from the traffic. After a tense few minutes, Ferdy and I managed to get the dog to come towards us. I happened to have a spare lead in my pocket and was able to clip it to its collar.

From there, it was a case of going door to door around the village until we found its owners. They were mortified. They had let it off the lead and it had bolted. It had only taken a moment.

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