A woman whose dog went missing during a walk is calling on vets to routinely scan new patients for identifying microchips to help reunite lost animals with their owners.

Alison Wallington, of West Somerton, lost her rare and valuable Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever Harvey during a walk at Burnley Hall Estate near to her home on December 6.

Mrs Wallington said Harvey and his sister rushed in to the undergrowth after a bird but only the female dog returned.

She said five-year-old Harvey would know his way home from the estate and the area had been searched without success. She said there had been an unconfirmed sighting near Sea Palling.

Mrs Wallington now fears her beloved pet, which has been neutered and would be unable to breed, has been stolen.

She said: 'It has been so long now. We have searched the area intensively over two weeks. Even if he had drowned in a ditch he would have surfaced by now. We asked the gamekeeper at Burnley Hall Estate to keep an eye out for him but there has been absolutely no sign at all.

'I am despondent. I am really having a hard time motivating myself to do anything. I haven't written a Christmas card or done any present wrapping. I have spent all my time looking on lost dog sites. I don't know what else to do.'

Harvey was wearing a collar with a name tag when he went missing and has got an identifying microchip under his skin and a tattoo in his ear.

Mrs Wallington said she was disappointed to learn vets didn't routinely scan new patients for microchips meaning stolen or lost dogs were less likely to be identified and returned to their owners.

She is supporting Bruce Forsyth's Vets Get Scanning appeal, which was launched after two Yorkshire Terriers belonging to Mr Forsyth's daughter were stolen and were only found following a high profile media campaign.

'Scanning for a microchip is such a simple thing to do,' she said. 'I did believe it would be done routinely so that if someone had sold Harvey on he could be picked up as stolen. Now I've found out that is not the case. People are getting their pets microchipped believing it will help them get them back if they go missing but they are being sold something that is not fit for purpose.'

She said if vets were happy to sell microchips to owners they should be prepared to back that up by scanning newly registered dogs.

Anyone with information about Harvey should contact Mrs Wallington on 01493 394915 or 07880 369728.