A tiny chihuahua is set to be reunited with its owners following a miraculous rescue from sea cliffs near Beltinge.

Stanley, a two-year-old rescue dog, first went missing on Monday last week, prompting fears from his owner that he had been stolen or had died.

But on Saturday he was found by a dog walker, who called Kent Fire and Rescue.

Kent Fire and Rescue spokeswoman Gemma Smith said: “We were called at 3.14pm to reports of a dog ten feet down the cliff at Bishopstone Lane, Herne Bay.

“Initially just an officer attended to assess the best way to get access to the dog and he called for a local crew who arrived and retrieved the animal using a short extension ladder, returning it to its owner.”

Dog foster carer Victoria Graham helped set up a search effort online alongside the owners. She said: “It’s pretty much a miracle that he is still alive.

“He would not have survived the weekend considering the drop in temperatures. He had no food or water and was slowly starving to death.

“So obviously he’s very shaken after his ordeal, the rescue team kept him under observation over the weekend to check against things like organ failure.”

Stanley’s owner Louise Fry, of Manor Close, reported him missing last Monday after an afternoon walk near Bishopstone Glen.

There were fears that he may have been stolen, following similar incident to Otis the chihuahua in November last year. There had been reports that a person had put a chihuahua into a car near Beltinge on Tuesday.

Ms Fry said: “We’ve had him since November, he’s an adopted rescue dog.

“We were devastated and really worried because he was out there so long and he is so small. He gets really anxious.

“We had started to fear the worst, that he might be dead in a hole somewhere.”