A dog that went missing following a fatal crash has been reunited with his owners following an almost two-week long search involving an expert tracker and a thermal drone.
Hailey Palmer was travelling to Nelson with her partner Shaydan, 7-month-old daughter Isla and dog Ace in the back of their ute on June 2.
They were suddenly involved in a head-on collision with another vehicle that was allegedly on the wrong side of the road. The ute flipped onto the highway's guard rail.
While the young family escaped the crash with only minor injuries, the driver of the other vehicle died.
"We are very, very lucky to all be alive," Palmer told 1News.
In the chaos of the moment, Ace, who was sitting in the back, disappeared, running away from the scene.
"I was more focused on John making sure Isla was okay, mother making sure her kids are okay.
"Once it hit me Ace was gone I honestly thought he'd run off to die because of how serious the crash was."
After the crash the family set their sights on finding the missing pup — spending two days searching around the area near the crash.
Ultimately unsuccessful, they reached out to Don Schwass of the Nelson Search/Dog Tracking page, who gave them advice on how to find the dog.
"That didn't really work, bust, because it's such a traumatic experience for Ace, so it's harder to track him," Palmer said.
An expert tracker, Schwass has used his skills to find missing people and pets for the last 30 years — not looking for payment in return.
"I said, 'if my advice doesn't work, I'll find your dog'," Schwass told 1News.
He travelled to the area and started using his techniques to narrow the search zone — being helped by North Canterbury vets.
Schwass used winds, his own tracking dog Piper and faeces to find clues as to where Ace might be. He knew he was close.
"It got to a point where I knew I was 24 hours near him."
Last night, he set a plan in motion to find Ace.
"I set up some bait with the owner's clothes in three areas and checked them constantly."
Using a thermal drone, Schwass watched from above, looking for signs of the canine.
"I got a ping."
He picked up the dog and quickly called its owners to tell them the good news.
"I was actually getting ready for bed when I got the call," Palmer said.
"I rushed to the car and had to focus on where I was driving because I was so excited."
In the late hours of last night, Palmer and Ace were finally reunited after nearly two weeks apart.
Their reunion was caught on camera, with Schwass calling it "utopian".
"It's why I do what I do," he said.
He has a Givealittle page where people can donate to support future searches.
Palmer told 1News she had endless amounts of praise for Schwass and was grateful for all he did.
"[Don's] been amazing," Palmer said.
"Just with the whole social media side of it."
After a trip to the vet this morning, Ace returned home with no significant injuries.
Palmer said he's now content, resting on the couch.
"I got my puppy back," she said.
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