A DOG owner has praised the "heroic" coastguard team that rescued his golden retriever from a cliff face.

Two-year-old Bella was stranded 60 feet down steep cliffs in Swanage on Monday afternoon after she ran away from her owners and fell.

Coastguard teams from St Alban’s Head and Swanage sprung into action, sending a rope technician down to safely help the dog to the top of the cliff, where she was reunited with her relieved owners.

Owner Paul Jarman, visiting the area from Saffron Walden in Essex, said he had let Bella off her lead in the car park not knowing there was a cliff at the brow of the hill.

He himself managed to climb down to within 15ft of his beloved pet but could not get any further.

"As the owner of our dog Bella, I would like to say a big, big thank you to everyone that was involved in saving her life and in some respects mine, as I would be lost without her," he said.

"Also, the teenagers who kept me company and constantly informed of what was going on up at the top, and the offer of water while at the bottom of the cliff. You are all heroes in my book.

"It is true we let her off at the car park and we didn’t know there was a cliff up at the top of the hill, but I do blame myself and will never make that mistake again.

"I would really like to find the teenagers who helped and thank them again, their parents should be so proud."

Bella was a little shaken after her fall but otherwise uninjured and Paul says she is now back to her "normal loving self".

The Coastguard is urging people to take extra care when walking along the cliffs as dogs are easily distracted and can get into difficulties.

Several pets have died over the years after plunging over cliff tops, but coastguards have also carried out many rescues.

A spokesman for Swanage Coastguard said: “Remember to try and keep your dog on a lead near cliffs.

"If they pick up the scent of an animal or hear something on the coast below it doesn’t take much for them to follow their nose.

"Above all, if your dog does fall down a cliff or starts getting swept out to sea, please do not attempt to rescue it yourself. Nine times out of ten your dog will rescue itself and return to shore alive, but tragically some owners do not."

If you need help with a stray pet, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.