The family of Peggy and Molly, the pet dog and magpie that formed an unusual bond, have provided an update after Molly was taken from their Gold Coast home.
Juliette Wells and Reece Mortensen have made headlines around the world after a magpie that had befriended their Staffordshire bull terrier was removed by wildlife officers after a handful of complaints.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Gold Coast couple fight to reunite two best friends.
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The couple had rescued the bird after it fell out of a tree nest at a local park.
According to the Queensland environment department, Molly was seized by wildlife officials because he had become “highly habituated to human contact and is not capable of being released back into the wild.”
Environment department officials said the pair were keeping the bird “unlawfully, with no permit, licence or authority being issued”.
But the bird’s removal from the home sparked anger among members of Peggy and Molly’s huge social media following.
Those following the saga have inundated Wells and Mortensen with questions about where Molly was taken, how the bird is faring, and how Peggy and her daughter Ruby are coping after their feathered mate was taken away.
“A huge thank you to you our supporters and followers,” Wells wrote on Instagram on Tuesday, sharing a picture of their beloved magpie with the caption, “Where is Molly?”
“Many of you are asking us if we have heard anything? Updates? ANYTHING????
“Answer is NO. NOTHING??!!??“Where is Molly? Is he OK?
“We want answers! We don’t know where he is? We have been kept in the dark.
“We are doing everything we can to get answers.”
All Wells and Mortensen know is that officials are trying to find a “suitable facility” for Molly, although many followers have argued Molly already had a perfectly good home.
The bird was not caged at the family’s Gold Coast home and was free to come and go as it pleased, the couple have said.
“This is absolutely absurd on their part,” one follower wrote.
“How cruel can people be to take an animal away from a home that he CHOSE to be his forever home, with a family that gave him their CHOICE to come and go as he wanted.
“Molly wasn’t caged or abused.
“He is loved and cared for by HIS FAMILY.”
“This is the MOST outrageous thing I’ve ever heard,” added another.
“Your animals were friends and had fun.
“He wasn’t captive.
“What on Earth is the World coming to and WHO instigated this?
“I’d say Molly is seriously wondering what is going on too.
“I hope everyone comes to their senses!!”
“So completely unfair and cruel,” wrote a third.
After surrendering Molly to the environment department last week, Wells explained that officials first contacted them in June last year after a “small group of people constantly complaining” alerted them to the bird’s presence.
“The department … turned up on our doorstep on the 13th of June, wanting us to surrender Molly,” she said.
“We refused, as she was thriving in the trees surrounding our property and had been accepted here.
“After long discussions, they left, and we thought everything was OK.”
Mortensen said the “grieving” couple had taken steps to comply with wildlife regulations that stipulate native animals must only be kept by licensed wildlife handlers.
“We did everything in our power to work with the department, including training and also me obtaining my wildlife permit,” he said.
The couple has urged people unhappy with the department’s actions to write to them or their local MP.
7NEWS.com.au has contacted the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation for comment on Molly’s current whereabouts.
