by Andy Gray

He's been nicknamed the Six Million Dollar Dog.

Raggs, a plucky bedlington terrier cross, was hit by a train and somehow survived.

The five-year-old suffered appalling injuries, but like Lee Majors’ seventies bionic superhero, his owners are confident they can rebuild him.

Raggs was missing for 15 hours before he was discovered cowering between tracks outside Hollingbourne Station.

A railway worker who rescued him from the busy Ashford to London line believed the dog had been hit and dragged by a train to the spot where he was found.

Raggs has had his left hind leg amputated, suffered sickening scars to his body and two skull fractures.

His owner, Margaret Whittington, 64, from Culpeper Close, Hollingbourne, said: "Raggs is like a child to us, he means everything to me and my family.

"The fact he survived for 15 hours meant he obviously wanted to be with us and he’s going to be around for a while yet."

It was Mrs Whittington’s son-in-law, Pete Freeman, 50, who found Raggs after he was let off his lead during an evening walk on Friday, September 16 in fields near Coombe Wood.

"i don't get queasy too easy, but i looked at his injuries and thought 'that's gory' " – pete freeman

He described seeing what looked like a black plastic bag as he scoured the railway line for the missing dog the following morning.

"I called out 'Raggs’ and he popped his head above the rail,” he said.

"Then I backed off because I didn’t want him getting knocked down by a passing train."

An agonising wait ensued while Raggs’ desperate owners waited for a member of rail staff to cut the power and retrieve their beloved dog.

Mr Freeman said: "Three trains passed before they finally turned the power off and got to Raggs.

"As each one approached I thought, 'Is this the one that kills him?'
Once rescued, evidence of the dog’s ordeal soon became apparent.

Mr Freeman added: "I don’t get queasy too easy, but I looked at his injuries and thought 'that’s gory’.

"I couldn’t see how he was going to survive."

Raggs is doing "as well as can be expected", according to his owners and is undergoing daily injections to aid his recovery.

"He’s a fighter and we’re confident he can still live a good life with us," Mrs Whittington said.