Be Prepared: Win the Battle Against Dog Theft

Published on January 11, 2008 by Freelance Contributors   ·   2 Comments

Don’t Let Your Dog Become Another Statistic

written by Emily Carter

When Lavinia Broome’s four-year-old Springer Spaniel was stolen from her home in Wiltshire in April she was devastated. “I couldn’t understand why someone would want to steal my dog,” Lavinia said. “Molly is like a best friend to me and not knowing where she was or whether she was OK for so long was awful.”

Determined to find out where her beloved Spaniel was, Lavinia scoured the country for news but for four months, heard nothing. Just as she began to fear the worst, on 1st August she saw Sheena Seagrave of Missing Pets Bureau on the Richard and Judy Show and realised there was someone who could help.

Sheena said: “Lavinia called the next day to register and I immediately added Molly’s details to the national Missing Pets Register and forwarded them to the RSPCA and other charities. I gave her a lot of advice and was pleased to hear she was already doing everything right – including checking the local papers for adverts selling dogs matching Molly’s description. This is where we believe many stolen dogs are sold.”

Whenever an un-spayed dog is stolen, Missing Pets Bureau recommends the owner checks their local papers for adverts selling litters of the same breed. Knowing Molly had recently been in season, Lavinia didn’t miss a single copy and just days later, on 6th August, there it was: an advert for eleven Springer Spaniel puppies!

“The timing was perfect so I swallowed my nerves and took a friend with me to meet the breeder. The puppies were £250 each and I said I’d buy two, then asked if I could see the mum. Luckily, he agreed and I knew it was Molly straight away because she’s very distinctive and has a teat missing. She is also microchipped.”

Lavinia then bravely confronted the breeder, demanding to know where he had got the dog from. “He said he had found her at a rescue centre but let me take her home with the two remaining puppies. I was so relieved to have her back.”

Sadly, one of the eleven puppies had died and eight had already been sold to unsuspecting buyers. Lavinia believes the dognapper could have made as much as £2,000 from the litter.

“It’s terrible to think someone has made so much money from stealing my dog,” she said. “But the puppies are beautiful and had I bred them myself, I probably would have kept two. I’ve called them Etti and Polly and they are an absolute joy.”

“We hope more can be done to stop criminals from stealing people’s dogs,” Sheena continued. “It’s a shocking crime that causes a huge amount of grief and pet owners need to be aware of it so they can take precautions in time.”

Asked what advice she could give to dog owners, Sheena said: “First you should give your pet as many forms of identification as possible, including an ID tag, microchip and even DNA identification. Pets should also be spayed or neutered to make them less inclined to stray and less attractive to thieves who target them for breeding. You should also secure your home and garden and if you have a side gate, keep it locked at all times. Finally, you should never leave your pet unattended – even in the garden at home.”

Missing Pets Bureau also advises against buying pets from unknown sources like local fairs and newspaper adverts. Instead, it is recommended that you visit your local rescue centre to give a much needed home to a rescue pet.

The insurance industry has first hand knowledge of how fast this crime is spreading throughout the country. Direct Line Insurance are one of many cover providers to tailor their services to help fight dog theft. “At Direct Line, we recognise how distressing it can be to lose your pet and that’s why our policy offers up to £500 towards advertising and reward to help get it back. We will also pay the purchase price if your pet is stolen or goes missing and has not been found within 45 days.”

Roxi, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier puppy, was hand-reared by the Sampson family from five-weeks-old, but at just twelve weeks she was stolen from her home by thieves masquerading as door-to-door salesmen. They came to the front door selling tea towels as a distraction before making off with the puppy from the back garden, in clear view of on looking neighbours.

“We were all absolutely devastated when Roxi was stolen,” said Nicky Sampson. “We couldn’t eat or sleep the whole time she was gone and the family business suffered. I hope no other dog owner has to go through what we did.”

If losing their puppy wasn’t enough, after posting rewards around their neighbourhood the Sampsons received a number of threatening phone calls.

They turned to Missing Pets Bureau for help and they contacted key pet welfare organisations on their behalf, posted Roxi’s details on the national Missing Pets Register and publicised her disappearance as widely as possible – securing a rare live appeal on the Paul O’Grady

Show. Fortunately, after the appeal, Roxi was returned just days later in good health and without Nicky having to pay any ransom or reward.

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This article was first published in K9 Magazine issue 18
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