Pickle the Labrador’s remarkable recovery after being hit by car on A14 near Orwell Bridge

It was touch and go for Pickle the black Labrador when she was hit by a car on the A14 this summer – but now the determined pooch is making a remarkable recovery.

Vets feared the worst when the much-loved pet was admitted with catastrophic injuries – including a fractured spine and detached pelvis – after being struck on the busy eastbound carriageway between the Copdock Interchange and the Orwell Bridge.

She ran away from her owner on a walk in Spring Wood, Belstead, on August 1 after catching a scent – and to his dismay Pickle was nowhere to be found. The wood is close to the A14 but her owners say she had never strayed anywhere near the road before.

“It was all very sudden – my husband was out walking her in Spring Wood,” said fellow owner Pauline Brown.

“She must have caught a scent of something because she bolted out of sight.

“He started to panic when he couldn’t find her in the usual places, she usually doesn’t stray very far at all so this was unusual.

She added: “We didn’t think in a million years that she would have got onto the A14 so when we got the call from the vets I was in complete shock.”

MRI scans and x-rays on Pickle, who lives with sister Pepper, revealed she had suffered serious injuries – and for a while her owners feared she may be put down.

“Her pelvis was completely detached and she had fractured her spine, the bit nearest her tail,” Mrs Brown added.

“The worry was that she might have brain damage or have damaged her spinal cord, but thankfully she didn’t have severe head injuries.”

After an operation and five weeks of recovery, the five-year-old pooch will have another x-ray in October. But she is on the mend, much to the delight of her family.

PC Darren Dawson was first on the scene and stayed with Pickle – who was found in lane two, often called the fast or outside lane – until vets arrived.

He put up a makeshift safety barrier with his police car to keep her calm.

“Little Pickle certainly found herself in a bit of a pickle,” he said.

“She was quite calm but seriously injured, I wanted to keep her calm and remaining still so provided a ‘fend off’ area for her with my police car so she was shielded from the passing traffic and remaining calm.

“It gave her a little bit of a security blanket.”

Mr and Mrs Brown thanked PC Dawson and the vets in person for the part they played in helping her.

See our website for a video showing Pickle’s remarkable recovery.