Winnie the chihuahua has been FOUND safe and well by dog-loving people of Milton Keynes

Winnie was missing for four hours this morning, prompting dozens of people to join the search party to find her.

She slipped her lead and fled in terror after another dog attacked her, and her owners feared she had been injured.

But this afternoon two searcher found her hiding in bushes next to the town's historic Iron Bridge. She had squeezed under a fence and was hiding in the long grass.

Winnie was unharmed but terrified and is now back with her owners.

They have thanked the men who found her, saying "They are our heroes."

The mission to find Winnie was the second example of Newport Pagnell's remarkable community spirit in recent weeks.

Last month hundreds of residents walked the streets during the night searching for missing six-year-old boy Aadil Umair Rahim, who had got lost at the town's M1 service station during a school trip.

After a frantic nine hour hunt by police and rescue services, little Aadil was found safe and well near the motorway. His dad later thanked residents and police for their remarkable efforts.

"The people of Newport Pagnell are always ready to help," said a spokesman for the town's Facebook page.