A missing kitten could have frozen to death if a dog had not come to his rescue.

The owners of Welly the kitten believe he would never have been found if it wasn’t for the help of lurcher saluki cross greyhound Susie.

Susie is my saviour. Welly spent the whole night in the cold and I can’t believe he survived

Lorna Hayes

Susie is my saviour. Welly spent the whole night in the cold and I can’t believe he survived

Lorna Hayes

Susie is my saviour. Welly spent the whole night in the cold and I can’t believe he survived

Lorna Hayes

Eleven-week-old Welly, so called because he has white paws and looks like he is wearing Wellington boots, went missing in Haydon End, Swindon.

Owner Lorna Hayes went out in the dark searching for him.

As she resumed her search at 6.30am the following day her neighbour’s dog Susie alerted her to Welly’s whereabouts with frantic barking and sniffing at an area of bushes.

When Lorna looked among the bushes she saw her kitten curled up and described him as “blue” with the cold.

Lorna, 29, said: “Susie found my kitten nearly dead in the undergrowth – we were ecstatic because we thought he had been caught by a fox or killed by the cold.

“I thought Welly was gone and I would never see him again.

“Susie is my saviour. Welly spent the whole night in the cold and I can’t believe he survived.

“If Susie had not barked we would have had no idea he was there.”

Lorna believes Welly may have left the house hidden in a visitor’s pushchair and jumped out into Haydon End Lane, where he was found.

She said he was probably too scared to move from the undergrowth and stayed still all night.

Susie’s owners Lynn and Peter Johnson noticed their dog barking at the bushes the night before but brought her in so she wouldn’t disturb the neighbours.

But when Lynn took her pet outside the next morning, Susie started barking at the same spot again.

Lorna approached Lynn in tears asking if she had seen her black and white cat and Lynn showed her the spot.

Welly was so still, Lorna and Lynn were sure he was dead but he let out a whimper when he was picked up.

“I think by that time he couldn’t move,” said mum-of-one Lorna. “He was literally frozen.”

Lynn is proud of Susie’s achievements.

Her pet already dons antlers and acts as a reindeer to raise money for Thamesdown Rotary Club.

She said: “Susie is a very placid, loving dog. She is a big dog but very gentle.

“She is elegant and pretty. They make excellent pets.”

Lorna says Welly has been staying away from the door since returning home.

It isn’t the first time he has been in danger, as he got his head stuck in a toy fire station and had to be rescued by firefighters.

“I think he is going to be one of those cats who gets himself into quite a lot of trouble,” said Lorna.

“It is almost like he appreciates being home now – he keeps chasing around the baubles from the tree.

“Normally I would be quite cross but I am so glad to have him home.”