McCain and Stan reunited by drone after puppy goes AWOL for two days

Donald McCain deals with equine problems on a daily basis, but the Grand National-winning trainer was counting his blessings on Thursday after receiving a big helping hand in solving a canine one.

He was away from his Cholmondeley yard in Cheshire when his four-month-old springer spaniel puppy Stan went missing on Tuesday.

Following a desperate search of the area – and with the assistance of an ex-policeman with a drone – the story had a happy ending when the pair were reunited two days later.

"We were away and my father-in-law decided to take Stan for a walk on the Sandstone Trail, a couple of miles from the yard, and he got away from him and disappeared," explained the trainer on Friday.

"The number of people from the area looking for him was unreal, and eventually yesterday morning someone thought they'd heard barking in a maize field about a mile from where he was lost.

"My farrier's wife's uncle is an ex-policeman called Noel and he came with a drone and spotted him, and Derek, a local man on the ground, went in with his dogs and found him.

Donald McCain: 'I spend more time talking to my dogs than anyone else'Credit: Edward Whitaker

"Every time people shouted Stan would go quiet – he's just that sort of dog – and he still had the lead wrapped around his legs, so he couldn't move."

Everyone at the stable was relieved to have Stan back, but none more so than the trainer.

"I spend more time talking to my dogs at the top of the garden than anyone else," McCain added.

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