A desperate week-long search for a beloved pet dog, who was sleeping in the back of his owner’s ute when the vehicle was stolen, has ended in tragedy.

Nathan McKeown had his eight-year-old German Shepherd, Arnie, with him when he dropped in to visit friends in Wynnum in Brisbane‘s east on November 8.

His friend’s Kelpie didn’t get along with Arnie, so he put his dog in the back canopy of his black Toyota HiLux and gave him some water.

When Mr McKeown went to leave several hours later, both his ute and Arnie were gone.

‘I went and met one of my mates, he picked me up, we drove around looking up streets, checking car parks seeing if it had been abandoned,’ the father-of-one told Seven News last week.

‘I would have heard him if he barked, he probably thought it was me getting in the ute.’

Mr McKeown issued countless online community appeals as Queensland Police worked around the clock following all lines of enquiry to locate Arnie and the stolen vehicle.

The search came to a heartbreaking end on the weekend after a member of the public located the vehicle parked on Amelia Street in Fortitude Valley with Arnie dead inside.

The German Shepherd Arnie went missing when the ute he was sleeping in was stolen in the early hours of the morning in Wynnum, Brisbane on November 8

Arnie’s owners, the McKeown family, led a desperate search to find their beloved pet dog

Louise McKeown (pictured) has previously said Arnie knew she was pregnant before she did

‘Unfortunately there isn’t a better outcome and Arnie was found… deceased, still in the back of the ute that was stolen,’ the family posted on Tuesday.

‘We are beyond devastated. He didn’t deserve to go like this!! We had the best life with him and he is going to be so missed.’

‘We sincerely want to thank everyone for all your help over the past week in the search for our boy Arnie.

‘Police are following up all CCTV footage and leads.’

The extensive search launched after Mr McKeown’s ute was stolen between 1.30am and 5am from Davidson Street on November 8.

Mr McKeown’s wife, Louise, and their five-year-old daughter were just as devastated about their missing pet.

‘He (Arnie) knew I was pregnant before I did,’ she said.

‘We’ve been through a lot with him, we just want him back. He’s very special. We just hope he’s being looked after, he’s a big dog, but he’s a big friendly giant.’

Arnie was dead in the back of the ute which he had been sleeping when it was stolen

Brisbane couple Louise and Nathan McKeown spent a week pleading for the return of their beloved German Shepherd Arnie before the search came to a tragic end

The couple spent a week driving around frantically trying to track down Arnie, calling vets and the local pounds.

They even hired a pet detective and offered a $6000 reward for Arnie.

‘Please just return our dog, you can keep the ute, we don’t need the ute, we just want our pet back,’ Mr McKeown pleaded at the time.

Queensland Police said that reports of ‘Arnie’ sightings took officers across the Brisbane region and surrounding districts, though none were substantiated.

Investigations to identify and locate the offender continue.

‘We hadn’t given up hope of finding Arnie and being able to reunite him with his family,’ Detective Senior Sergeant Christopher Lafferty said.

‘Investigators are devastated by this discovery and our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time.

The family said they were devastated by the loss, thanking those who had helped in the search

‘Officers remain committed to finding justice for Arnie and his family and will continue to investigate any report to identify and locate the offender.’

Anyone with relevant information or vision, including dashcam and CCTV footage, that they have not yet reported, they have been urged to contact police.