Dog theft is it increasing?

Many years ago my DH had a workshop in a building in Brixton. The exterior wall had a large hole which had been used for steam vents but was covered on the inside by a metal plate. A kestrel nested in the hole and he kept an eye on them. As the chicks began learning to fly he often had to go outside to pick them up. One day a chick flew out of the building, down the road and across Brixton High Road, slamming into a plate glass window. He chased it and managed to pick it up. A young lad who worked in a different part of the building had seen the film Kes and so wanted one of the chicks as a pet. He was quite angry when my DH told him no. Anyway, there was a happy ending because they all flew away and he saw them on top of a nearby roof. Once they'd gone he put a panel across the exterior of the hole to prevent future nesting. An early example of someone feeling entitled.

One solution - do not buy fashionable breeds- adopt older Heinz 57.

Emilymarie spot on

Some years ago now. One of my dog walkers team had her van stolen with dogs in her care in the vehicle. Four, was it five, were left tied to a lamp post, two were held for ransom. The dog walker had walked up to her next pickups house when a car pulled up behind her van, the passenger of the car leapt out and jumped in her van and both vehicles drove off.

It was awful. Thieves demanded thousands of pounds.

The three legged dog stolen from outside the shop and found in Birmingham was one I was following on DogLost. I never leave my dog outside a shop now, never.

jaye don’t talk about USA they declaw cats over there so they don’t spoil the furniture !
No tallyann no foxes here unfortunately I wish there was beautiful creatures

Bluebell....one word...fox!!

My dogs are chipped and are never left alone in the garden or any where else. I agree there should be a separate punishment for any animal theft.

On Twitter there are constant appeals regarding stolen dogs. I always share the posts. Just today there was a series of responses re a stolen dog - a bus driver responded with a description of a person seen with a similar dog, the location was shared and then a taxi driver tweeted with a very good description of the thief which enabled eagle eyed people to spot this person and call the police. Result? The dog returned to his ecstatic owner. The pics of this were heartwarming. Good old Twitter enabling the good guys among us to help out a bereft owner and distressed dog.

Fantastic post emilymaria, agree with everything you said. Also agree with jaye53. Tougher laws are definitely needed for animal abusers.

That wont realistically happen until we start to make it less socially acceptable for all people to feel entitled to keep pets, regardless of whether or not their circumstances/accomodation etc are suitable animal homes.

UK needs to get its act together and start treating animal abuse with stiffer penalties like USA. But akso pet owners need to chip their animals and keep on lead when in public places and buzy towns. Also adopt dont shop.

People think they have a right to own pets and that translates to a culture where people turned down bybgood breeders or rescue places getting their pets elsewhere.

I think the culture of everyone being entitled to a pet regardless of their circumstances needs a major shift across the board.

There are too many cats locked in small flats. Dogs left alone all day. Parrots kept alone (they need a mate) etc..

Its all part of the same entitled culture we have around pet ownership in the UK.

I agree about all pets being micro-chipped. My Burmese cat went missing a few years ago but was found 6 weeks later, a good few miles away, by someone who kindly took her to a vet to check for a chip. She was then returned to me. I'll never find out how she got to where she was found but, being a Burmese, she is a nosy little thing and probably hopped into the back of someone's car. Either that or she was stolen and they got bored with her (and with being bitten - she can be a bit iffy)

Had a dog stolen years ago - broke my heart.In more recent times -had a loose dog come through my catflap,which then killed one of my elderly cats.Quite literally broke down - as I witnessed it - distraught - and angry - doesn't even come close to how I felt.RSPCA/police offered no help/advice/action.Very recently - a number of neighbours have reported abuse/neglect of a dog to the RSPCA - where one of my daughters lives - have heard the poor animal crying when visiting there and my daughter has also given the RSPCA taped evidence showing it being beaten by it's owner.Have contacted the RSPCA myself - who have visited the address where the dog is being kept -however,they have not removed the poor animal from this awful plight -sorry - I digress from original thread - animal theft/cruelty/neglect should be a criminal offence which is dealt with via custodial sentencing.

Emilymaria agree with everything you say. I have two dogs and hardly ever leave them for 15mins while I nip to the shop and they are left inside the house and locked in. In the past I've had a pen outside but not now: I've heard so many stories of pets going missing. If DH and I go out together for an evening I book them into kennels. I would be heartbroken if anything happened to my dogs.

I too see so many pets gone missing in our area - occasionally it's just that they've run off whilst out walking and sometimes it's heartening to see they've been found but too often they're never seen again. I worry about one of mine who does spend most of his time outside - he's usually in the summerhouse but when he's not I start to worry. We have had drug addicts in a building behind us and I am concerned he goes in the derelict building and could stand on a needle or be trapped when they've set fire to it - a regular occurrence until someone took the roof off. The other cat poddles about in the garden but never ventures out of it and I can't imagine anyone managing to get hold of her to carry her off - she has to be sedated to have her claws cut!!

To answer OP's question, yes, I think stealing an animal whether it is a domestic pet or a farm animal should not just be treated as simple theft.

All pets know where they belong and most love their owners, so stealing someone's pet inflicts distress on the animal, that suddenly finds itself in the hands of complete strangers, as well as inflicting pain on the owner.

Surely, it is possible to petition for theft of animals to be regarded both as theft and as an instance of cruelty to animals?

I’m with you on all of your points EmilyMaria. I do have pedigree dogs though, Poodles. They don’t shed and I have asthma. They are also ‘four square’, with no extremes (muzzle, eyes etc), so are generally healthy.

Scares me that it is happening so much also that the poor things ate seldom found.

The two (rescue) cats I have now are exclusively house cats. Previously, all my cats would go outside. But it's too risky. Out of the 7 previous cats I've owned, 4 disappeared. Cats ARE prone to walk off, but I don't think most of mine did. I think getting hit by cars or stolen for bait (3 out of those 4 were exceptionally friendly and would go to anyone while outside).

I'm not risking it anymore. It cuts out the risk of fleas/ear mites too. Although the cats life is undoubtedly more restricted.

Where money is demanded be it in a large or small amount for the return of ones property especially animals requires law involvement.You just don't hand it over.Where does it stop.? I can appreciate how desperate persons will be to get returned what has been stolen from them however the law is not stupid and extortion nothing new.

You were so right to be cautious tooyoungtobeagran if you had seen the injuries inflicted by gypsies on our last rescue dog you would be appalled. Now she is the kindest, gentlest little dog imaginable, we are so lucky to have her.

I was watching someone bag his dog’s poo in the park yesterday and thinking the world is cleaner. As a child I lived in a world full of dog dirt but children and many dogs ran free. It was probably a better world for them but a worst world for those affected by their noise and mess. Now pets and children are much more regimented. I am sorry for the house cats. What sort of life is that for a cat? Also for the neighbours of the barking house and car guard dogs. But heigh-ho. There are always conflicting interests and struggles among human animals.

Once had travellers set up near our home. Whilst walking my two dogs one of them, leaning on a gate, commented about my terrier. When I got home family were instructed to walk in other areas and not to let dogs into paddock until they had moved on. If either dog had gone missing the travellers would have found themselves homeless. No one messes with my animals. I'd happily sell my kids though sometimes

I think its disingenuous to say that there isnt a huge and problematic appetite for novelty breeds and cross breeds in the UK right now. And even the people who chose ethical breeders and sources for their trendy cross breeds are contributing to the overall popularity which in turn makes them more desirable to people who dont care where they came from.