Supportive strangers helped trace a High Wycombe family’s injured dog - which had been missing for almost a week - with more than 2,000 people sharing information about the search on a social media website.

Pet owner Sam Betts, who lives in Totteridge Road, said her family were devastated when black Labrador Max went missing on Thursday, February 5, and started a Facebook campaign in hope someone may spot the six-year-old.

Despite dozens of sightings mentioned on the Wycombe Facebook group proving fruitless, the family were reunited with Max when he was spotted in Totteridge on Tuesday.

The online group also raised hundreds of pounds to pay for vet bills - with Max needing an operation on one of his legs, after he was hit by a car while roaming the streets - but Mrs Betts has since asked for the money to be donated to Stokenchurch Dog Rescue instead.

The childminder said: "We are so relieved he is back now, it was really worrying and upsetting with him being lost for so long.

"Our three children all love him and we couldn’t believe it when he went, my three-year-old would ask everyday ‘where is Max?’.

"He managed to squeeze himself out of a very small gap in the back garden and when we realised he had gone I put something on the Facebook group because I know there are a lot of dog walkers around Wycombe who may see him.

"Loads of people responded wishing us luck and when we found out someone had found him we couldn’t believe it.

"He was seen all over Wycombe, he must have had quite an adventure - it is a shame dogs can't talk."

It is the second time the Facebook group - which has almost 14,000 members - has been in the headlines in the last few months.

Before Christmas, members of the group rallied to raise money for Danish resident Zascha Friis so she could visit her family for the festive holiday.

Although she put an appeal out asking of where to volunteer on December 25 a handful of people responded suggesting they should instead pay for her to fly home.

And within days they raised enough for plane tickets and transport from her address in Wycombe to the airport.

Speaking of the help the Facebook group gave to her family, Mrs Betts said: "We are all so grateful for their help over these last few days and we are just happy to have him back now.

"The support has been amazing, every day we had people reporting seeing him and we would all try and rush there and look for him, but we were always too late.

"I couldn’t believe all the money which has been raised as well, but we would prefer it to go to dogs who are less fortunate than Max, and we have asked for it to be donated to Stokenchurch Dog Rescue."

She also wanted to thank Susan Brown and Celine Lee for all their help in finding Max.