A devastated animal owner who lost her dog Patch when he jumped aboard a train has been reunited with her beloved pet after spotting him on Twitter.
Deirdre Anglin was left heartbroken when her pet Jack Russell Patch disappeared from her home on Tuesday night and all her attempts to find him failed.
But when she logged on to her Twitter account she saw a tweet about a 'lost dog' with a photo attached and discovered it was her pet Patch.
Reunited: Deirdre Anglin back with her Jack Russell terrier Patch after spotting a tweet about him on the website Twitter
The adventurous Jack Russell had jumped on a commuter train from rural Kilcock, County Kildare, to Dublin 30 kilometres away.
Irish Rail sent a 'Lost dog!' tweet with a photo attachment after Patch arrived in Dublin station on Wednesday morning without an owner.
Missing: Ms Anglin recognised Patch in this picture tweeted by Irish Rail
The message was retweeted 500 times in just 32 minutes until it was spotted by Ms Anglin who quickly replied to Irish Rail: 'That's my dog!'
Staff aboard the train discovered Patch shortly after leaving Kilcock and nicknamed him Checker as he followed them around while they inspected tickets and also searched for his owner.
When they arrived at the train's final stop at Pearse Street station in the heart of the capital it became clear the dog had no owner on board.
Staff then tweeted that they had a found a lost dog and also posted a picture of Patch.
Irish Rail spokesman Barry Kenny said staff at Pearse Station had quickly become attached to Patch and were disappointed to see him go when Ms Anglin came to collect him.
He said: 'It was good she showed up so quickly, because the staff in the office were getting quite attached to him.'
Ms Anglin thanked Irish Rail for posting Patch's photo on Twitter and all the other retweeters that helped her find Patch so quickly.
Irish Rail and Anglin posted a series of photos documenting her Dublin reunion with Patch, their return train trip, and even their car journey home.
She tweeted: 'Thanks to everyone involved in getting Patch back to us.'
The power of Twitter: The Irish Rail 'Lost dog!' message was retweeted 500 times in just 32 minutes
