A sheepdog who had been rehomed in the north of England, channelled his inner ‘Homeward Bound’ when he took the notion to travel 240 miles to get back to his home in Wales.

Pero the Sheepdog, is one of 15 sheepdogs on a family farm in Wales but was given away to a farmer in Cumbria to see how he worked there.

But while out herding sheep, he got a sudden injection of homesickness and dashed home to Wales. It took him 12 days to complete the return journey.

His farmer in Wales, Alan James, says he was astounded by his animal’s ability to make the journey safely.

"A sheepdog can go all day and cover a lot of ground. But it is a mystery how he found his way here. We don't know how he was fed or if he hitched a lift. But it was incredible when he turned up on a doorstep. We would love to solve the mystery of how he managed it."

And although the original plan was to see how Pero performed for his new farmer, Mr James’ wife, Shan, says that their beloved dog is home for good.

"We have a lot of dogs and a friend knew the farmer in Cockermouth was looking for a dog that could round sheep and follow a quad bike. We thought Pero would be ideal for the job. We let him go on a trial at the beginning of March. We were then told that Pero had disappeared on April 8, and was nowhere to be seen. But then last Wednesday evening my husband Alan went out to check on the animals after supper and there was Pero on our doorstep. It was a bit of a shock, and the dog was going crazy after seeing Alan."