SHE is one of the most important examples of a very rare breed, and she is missing somewhere in the Hampshire countryside.

Just a day after being crowned the best import registered dog at the Southampton Dog Show, Portuguese Podengo Meira was startled and ran off while she was out on a country walk.

Her desperate owner Sue Dunning is now appealing for help from the public in finding her prized pet, and even offering £500 to anyone who finds her.

Sue had taken Meira and four other dogs for a stroll, between the villages of Owslebury and Upham with a friend. When two other dogs jumped over a fence they startled the group, and all the animals scattered in various directions.

Sue, 60, who is from Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, managed to round up all her pets, except for the nine-month-old prize-winning puppy.

Despite a frantic search, Meira was nowhere to be seen.

The distraught hospital technician took the whole of last week off work to stay in the area and continue searching for her missing pet with friends.

But despite devoting every day from 4.30am to 9.30pm to looking for her pet, she has now had to return home without her beloved dog.

"It was a lovely weekend until that happened, and now it's like living through a nightmare," said Sue.

"I've had dogs for 40 years and never lost one before, which it's such a dreadful shock.

"There was a possible sighting last Wednesday, near where she went missing, but other than that we know nothing."

Sue is now appealing to Daily Echo readers for help in tracking down her missing pooch.

"She's very important to the breed, as well as immensely important to me as a pet," she said.

"I've had her since she was a baby.

"These Podengas have only just come to the country. She's a first generation over here, and because she's a smooth coat she's even rarer."

Although Podenga's are officially members of the hound family, they are similar in size to a Jack Russell, and Sue describes her as looking like a Corgi with a tail.

Meira is tan and white in colour, with a distinctive white blaze on her face, with a tan spot on her forehead.