Dog theft worries on the increase?

[Wandavision]

Is anyone else feeling far more cautious with the current boom in puppy selling prices? I had an incident with past Ddog 10yrs ago where a car of 4 men stopped and opened the back door and squeaked a toy. Ddog jumped in 😐 but fortunately I was hot enough on her heels to engage in a babbled 60sec convo about 'heart defects, daily meds, yes it's such a shame!'. And they pushed her back out of the car to me. I honestly burst into tears once they'd pulled away. With the current dog snatches on SM, and puppy prices I'll not lie but I'm far less confident walking current Ddog (small/pedigree) than ever before. Am I just being daft and paranoid, or is anyone else feeling this too?

Yes I have a 16wk old puppy and am extra vigilant on my evening walk as it does worry me. We have him upstairs with us at night too after a cocker puppy got taken from a house a few miles away.

Unfortunately your worries aren't baseless - there has been a rise in dog thefts as their price has gone up so much.

You did brilliantly thwarting the previous attempt at dognapping btw, well done!

There's a bit of stuff which may be useful on the Dogs Trust website, maybe there are some other helpful sites.

www.dogstrust.org.uk/news-events/issues-campaigns/dog-theft/

Frightened here too (pedigree, mini breed) I was approached last summer by a group of men asking if I wanted to breed her, I replied that she had been spayed and quickly walked away but felt very intimidated. She sleeps upstairs and I’m even paranoid about leaving her home alone, despite living in a safe area and having alarms/cameras.
I’ve had dogs my whole life and never felt like this

Blimey quick thinking from you with the dog nappers.
Our local police are issuing warnings about this.

We live in South Norfolk and it’s a huge, huge problem here, getting worse all the time at the moment. Almost everyday there are reports on the local community pages on social media of people having their dogs stolen. Apparently some gangs are even watching people leave the vets with their dogs and following them home to see where they live..! Scary.

I live in an area where dog theft has gone through the roof! I don't walk DDogs anymore alone and we've installed cameras after someone tried to break into a neighbours and grab her dogs out of her garden. Usually the back door is ajar and the dogs wonder around as they please but now we watch them at all times

Is not that big of a problem. 350 dogs were stolen (according to.dog lost) last year which is dreadful but its not on the epidemic scale Facebook appears to show. That's not to say we should be blasé but we shouldn't let the fear or it ruin our walks.

Well done,OP. Quick thinking - but I can well imagine how much that shook you up.

There is not a big enough penaltly for dog theft, which should be a crime in itself, with it's own penalty guidelines. The devastation is causes far outstrips the monetary value of the dog.

I try to keep fears in perspective (relatively low chance etc) but still only ever keep the dog within my sight, never leave him unwatched in the garden. Theft was also part of my decision to have him neutered.

In some ways, it pays to have a suspicious dog who is more likely to bark at a stranger approaching it (as mine would). If I had a super friendly one that loved meeting people I'd be more concerned - though that would be easier in social situations .

The dogs trust website states that 2000 dogs a year are stolen which is just awful and it seems to be a crime that's increasing all the time

There was a piece in the Sunday Times a couple of weeks ago which puts the numbers higher. There aren't accurate stats because dog theft isn't a specific crime. Anyway, some more info in here which may be helpful.

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/dog-theft-lockdown-pet-detective-6w8hzt076?shareToken=ba1521f6a8d98477c4d0f238735594a4

Well done OP for your quick thinking. It terrifies me, I have a working cocker and I know cockers are popular atm. He’s quite shy though and doesn’t routinely say hello to strangers, he won’t take treats from strangers either (I have to hand it to him) so that gives me some comfort. He’s neutered so no use to breed.

Crime numbers on dog thefts are, notorisously, unreliable due to differences across the country in how it is recorded. e.g. sometimes as a burglary without mention that it was a dog taken, whole litters recorded as a single theft instance, sometimes not recorded as a crime at all, and so on. I don't think the Dogs Trust or Dogs Lost can have an accurate view on numbers (though I am sure they are trying very hard to).

Theft was also part of my decision to have him neutered.

This is very true - once your dog reaches adulthood their main value to thieves is in breeding.

Xpost with XiCi - the ST piece quotes the 2000 figure.

They are talking about this now on LBC.

I’m SE where thefts seem rife if SM is to be believed . Apparently the latest is some people in a white van with RSPCA stickers on it that stop you , tell you your dog matches the description of a stolen dog and try to take the dog ‘to check it’s chip’ . I can’t say I’m any more concerned than I ever have been and dog is now 10 but I’m constantly amazed at people who still allow their dogs to be in front gardens etc unattended and are then surprised when the dog gets stolen .

Well they just said on LBC that dog thefts have tripled.