So far, the search of the popular recreation area has found no traces of the lovable seven-and-a-half-year-old dog, leading her owner Mary McNulty to fear that her dog will be killed on June 24, the first day of the Matariki long weekend.
“This is a well-behaved dog that comes back on a whistle,” she said.
“She’s definitely going to be rabbiting, but I’ve never seen her chase a rabbit for more than half an hour and then she’s back.
“She’s never been missing, I just wonder if someone picked her up.
“There were a lot of people around, she’s a golden retriever, so she likes people, especially kids.
“It’s possible she thought, ‘There are some kids I’m going to talk to them.’ But I expected her to come back.”
McNulty was taking Bertie and her other golden retrievers Reg and Clifford for their daily exercise routine around 10:30 am when a rabbit piqued their interest.
Bertie and Reg gave chase, but only the younger dog returned, leading to a search until dark.
Over the long weekend, search and rescue dogs and a drone supported the hunt as Reg languished back home in Moncks Bay.
“He wouldn’t eat for three days, he was very upset. He kept looking for his mother,” said McNulty, thanking the community for their continued support.
“I have a friend with sniffer dogs and he walked his too.
“A friend of a friend had a drone. We showed people and flyers… just about everything.
“We’ve walked in that area, we’ve searched the area, I don’t know how many times and how many people.
“We are devastated, but the light of it, if you will, is the kindness of people.
“They’ve surfaced and gone for a walk and looked over the edges in case she went through a sheer.
“Between earthquakes and time, there are a lot of drops and stuff, but we haven’t found anything.
“There are no sightings, nothing, which is why I think someone picked her up,” said McNulty, who will not give up the search.
“You must have hope,” she said.
“What else have you got?”