The Dramatic Rise In Dogs Thefts UK
The Dramatic Rise of Dog Thefts In the UK
Pets are not commodities, they are sentient animals, therefore, laws pertaining to them should take into account their capacity to feel emotions such as distress, love, loss, pain, happiness and fear, that is what makes them sentient. I am a dog behaviourist, that campaigns on numerous concerns and issues that have a negative impact on our pets and their owners These concerns range from overvaccination to paediatric neutering, the way the vet industry is changing and some parts of the dog food industry. Please sign my petition to change the law regarding the theft of our dogs and the fact they feel deep and enduring emotions. Their sentience should be recognised. So should the terrible impact this crime has on the victims both the dogs and their distraught owners and family.
Please sign my Petition: Change The Law on Dog Theft
Coronavirus Causing Enormous Spike in Dog Thefts: There has been a massive increase in demand of people wanting pets and especially dogs.
This has caused the cost of buying dogs and puppies to go through the roof.
The cost is ludicrously high, but people are desperate and will pay anything for what they want.
This has inevitably brought the evil trade of dognapping to increase exponentially.
It has been reported that Dog Thefts in 2020 have increased by 250%
There are organised gangs from England, Ireland and many parts of mainland Europe stealing to order. This is big business and big paydays for these heartless evil traders in misery. What has the government done about it? Nothing as usual.
They can pontificate about windfarms and banning diesel and petrol cars but cannot make a simple change to the clearly outdated 1968 theft act. That act states that dogs are property in the same way as a pushbike or a mobile phone.
I want the law changed, as well as the sentencing we must also recognise sentience in pets. By equating animals to ‘property’, we are denying them the right to be considered sentient beings.
There are two victims in these thefts, the owner and the pets themselves. Both are capable of emotions such as love, loss, distress, pain and fear. A minimum 2-year jail sentence must be imposed on anyone evil enough to steal what is, in reality, a member of our family and five years for a second offence.
If the law accepts that our pets are sentient then sentencing would have to be harsher to reflect the feeling, loss, devastation and emotional meltdown of both the pet and the owner.
Devastating Loss: Other than someone kidnapping children, I cannot think of anything more devastating than someone stealing any of my dogs.
The recent pandemic has seen dogs in high demand with unscrupulous breeders cashing in on the enormous demand the loneliness lockdown has created. This demand has created a subculture of thoughtless and cruel dog thefts that have seen whole litters stolen to feed that rising market
I thought the days of the puppy farms were over I was wrong Yesterday in my Dog Store in Hampton Hill I saw a lady who had bought a puppy that day. She was told it was 9 weeks old, it was considerably younger and should not have been taken from its mother.
Its nose and eyes were running and it wobbled as it stood, its milk teeth had not fully formed, though it got stronger after we fed her. She paid £3,000 for this little scrap of misery.
I have contacted the lady since and the dog is doing well and will have a great life as this lady was very caring. It had been advertised on Pet4homes. When are sites like this going to be closed down?
This dog was not with its mother it was vastly underaged, no puppy should ever leave its mother before 7.5 weeks. Though the law states 8 weeks I believe 7.5 weeks may be better because the first hazard avoidance period (fear period) peaks at 8 to 10.5 weeks.
We fed and watered this little pup and supplied weaning porridge and other goods and told her to get it to the vets ASAP. I have no idea if this pup was stolen but I am sure we will find out. The sellers of this little puppy are unscrupulous crooks with no empathy or compassion.
They should be prosecuted and jailed, but I will not hold my breath. Police and successive governments are not interested. Until we change the law on dog theft and illegal sales then the misery will continue.
At the time of writing this article, I have six dogs 5 working cockers and a miniature dachshund, all have a place deep in my heart. Along with all the others that have passed away over the many years, I have lived and worked with dogs.
The picture on the right is my litter of seven working Cockers with Fizz their mother. In Fifty + years of owning and working with dogs, this is the only litter I have ever bred.
The puppy with the white-collar was the one I kept called Gunner and he is the face of the campaign I am launching to change the law on dog theft. I want our politicians to stop skirting around the subject and accept that dogs are not just property or a commodity they are living breathing animals with deep feelings and emotions.
Why would I want to put a litter of 1-day old puppies in an article about dog theft?, Simple, in a robbery last year a litter of eight one-day-old French Bulldog puppies were stolen at knifepoint from the pregnant owner in her own home, she was held at knifepoint. They were dumped outside of a Vets the next day.
Unfortunately, six of them died. It not clear whether they were returned because of the wide publicity or a reward of £10,000 was claimed. I can currently find no reports of the perpetrators being apprehended or charged. However, if someone could correct me I will change that statement. I will not hold my breath (1) Litter of French Bulldogs Stolen.
The litter above are Working Cockers and to make sure they had the best start in life I had over 400 people visit and handle them before they were 7 weeks of age. The included children daily If you want to breed then take it seriously, and give them the best start in life. I believe all breeders should have to take a course in the requirements to breed a litter, this is especially the case during this pandemic as everyone is trying to get on the bandwagon.
Is This a Recent Phenomenon?: Unfortunately, dog theft has been with us for centuries. It was noted by Charles Dickens that criminals were stealing dogs to ransom them back to their owners. It was mainly rich people that owned dogs in Dickens time nearly two hundred years ago. We now have over 8 million dogs a similar amount of cats in the UK and 50% of all households own a pet.
The Impact of Dog Theft:: Many thousands of people go through the shock and despair of having their pets taken from them by criminals, Alarming statistics show that over the last five years dog thefts have increased every single year.
£13.50 – £23.50
£8.50 – £13.50
Statistics show that the number of dogs officially reported stolen in the UK is five every day. However, I believe that figure is just the tip of the iceberg. People may have lost confidence in our police, though in this case, the unfortunate reality is the law regards dogs as property, imeaning criminals often walk free from a court or get a small fine average in £250.00.
Reporting Structure: The other reason is that police forces record this crime differently across the country.
Pet thefts are often categorised as robbery or burglary without mentioning that dogs were stolen just that property was stolen, hiding the true extent of the problem.
In quite a number of cases, whole litters of puppies are stolen, this is often logged as just 1 theft.
This is big business for the organised gangs that are part of the epidemic in pet thefts, the terrible irony is it is being treated as just petty theft.
I believe that is unbelievably frustrating and also heartbreaking!
Three weeks ago a litter of Staffie puppies was snatched from a house in Manchester The five-week-old puppies were shoved into carrier bags and their mother was slashed in the face with a machete when she tried to defend them. Fortunately, the perpetrators were caught and the puppies returned unharmed. They were lucky this time
I believe that potentially 100+ dogs a day are stolen. Sadly, only one in five dogs is ever reunited with its owner, leaving 80% mourning the loss of their pet for many years.
Because of either apathy or time constraints, our police and judicial system are not taking this type of theft seriously, They are not being officially reported. Instead, the frantic owners are turning to pet detective agencies, and online groups like the fantastic (2) Dog Lost. Which is a free donation led organisation that helps thousands of pets to be reunited with their distraught owners?
Organised Gangs: Dogs have been reported stolen from homes, cars and outside of shops and of course on walks and from gardens, people have been held at knifepoint whilst the dogs have been snatched.
There are organised gangs that drive around parks and streets looking for vulnerable people and dogs. Many dogs are stolen from front or back gardens. If a dog is off the lead dognappers can lure them with food towards bushes before clipping on a lead or looping a slip lead over their heads. I teach all my dogs not to take food off strangers unless they are given a specific command This is how? (3) The Jingler “OFF” Command
Gangs have been observed marking homes that have pets using chalk markings on nearby curbs or on the house itself. The marks can be letters or just symbols. Therefore it is worth keeping an eye for any suspicious new marks near your property.
Statistics published in 2018 state that London has the highest amount of reported thefts with 304 officially reported. Remember the actual figures may run into thousands because of the law and false reporting.
Why Are Dogs Stolen?:
- Many are snatched by the dognappers, who then wait for a reward to be posted. They then claim the reward giving back the dog they had actually stolen,
- Blackmail, you will get your dog back if you pay them a ransom.
- Some dogs are stolen to order to be resold to an unsuspecting or even a knowing buyer.
- Females that are stolen to be bred from year after year. Fortunately, recent changes to the law on the sale of dogs will in time put an end to puppy mills.
- That law was a long time coming I have campaigned for the last 30 years to ban puppy farms and pet shops selling dogs.
- This does not bear thinking about but the breed that is stolen the most is the Staffie. They are used as bait dogs or just fought until they die. Any dog could be used by the sadistic dogfighting fraternity. How anyone could get pleasure in seeing a dog been torn apart is beyond my comprehension. Sick deluded individuals.
- Dogfighting is still legal in parts of Russia and Japan, It was banned in the UK in 1835 and has been outlawed in most of the rest world. Dog fights are held openly in parts of Latin America, Pakistan and Eastern Europe, and has gone underground in the U.S. and the United Kingdom. In Afghanistan, dogfighting has seen a resurgence, after almost disappearing under the Taliban who outlawed the sport to prevent gambling. Animal cruelty arguments don’t carry much weight in Afghanistan, where dogfighting is a big business and a source of income for the owners of champion dogs. Read my article (4) Billy’s Story. Dog theft through the eyes of a dog that was stolen for bait for dogfighting. Unfortunately, it is harrowing but needs to be understood.
- Another reason dogs are snatched is to sell to medical testing facilities for testing and vivisection, this area could be stopped by a simple change in the law that stipulates no dog can be sold without a vets letter stating the seller is the owner of the dog and stating the microchip number and no dog could be sold without a microchip. Fines for dogs without microchips should be a minimum of a thousand pounds.
Recall Training: One of the main reasons dogs are snatched by dognappers and criminals or go missing is poor recall training. Some people findings your dogs alone may not want to return for either financial reasons or dogfighting or they just like the look of your dog. All dogs can be taught a reliable recall. Obviously, the best time to teach this is when they are puppies. However, if you have a junior or an adult dog then help is at hand. (5) Recall Training Puppies or (6) Recall Training Junior or Adult Dogs
We Need a Change in The Law: Dogs are not property, they are a deeply loved member of our family, it is a tragedy if your dog is stolen, it is an inconvenience if your phone is nicked; it does not have the deep emotional effect the loss of your pet causes. We need a change in the law and we need it now. Parliament discussed a review of the law in July 2018 but rejected any changes to the current law pertaining to dog thefts. I fervently believe that animal theft should be a crime in its own right. The law should and must reflect the impact the crime has on the victims. Dogs are sentient, not inanimate objects.
However, with turbulent times in our government and parliament, I believe it is time to reignite the argument for a radical rethink on the current weak and pitiful laws pertaining to dog theft To this end I have started a petition asking for the law to be changed to make it a specific criminal offence to steal a pet and the sentence should be harsh and should reflect the anguish and distress it causes to the pets and the owners. Pet theft rips the heart out of families and wrecks lives. The law must reflect the enormous impact this crime has on the victims. This is also worth reading (7) Is The Veterinary Profession Broken? This article will shock you.
I tried hard to get onto the Government website they took three weeks to say they rejected my petition. In those three weeks, I could have put my petition to change .org. I wrote to them and complained about their communication skills. Guess what? They did not communicate back, remind you of anyone? I, therefore, started my petition on change.org.
Just a quick update as of today October 2020 the petition has 461.000 + signatures and is expected to at least 1/2 a Million. Thanks to the tremendous effort of those that love their dogs and people that are behind change.org
Please click on the link to sign and more importantly share the petition far and wide.
Change The Law On Pet Theft Change.org See below for further information
7th August 2019
Updated October 2021
©Stan Rawlinson Doglistener
Dog Behaviourist and Obedience Trainer
and owner of The Dog Store Hampton Hill
My Thanks to Dougal’s Army for the poster
(1) Litter of French Bulldogs Stolen
(2) Dog Lost
(4) Billy’s Story
(6) Recall Training Junior or Adult Dogs
(7) Is The Veterinary Profession Broken?
Other Reading
Why Are Our Dogs Dying 11% Earlier ThanTen Years ago
Ethical and Totally Natural Air Dried Dog Treats
Comments (4)
Dog theft petition
I wonder if the veterinary profession would be opposed to a change in the legal status of dogs because it could lead to more litigation for malpractice, including for example, massive over-vaccination. On the other hand the legal profession would welcome it. Then it would be a matter of who had the strongest lobbying influence with politicians. Would an approach to the relevant institutions of the legal profession be worthwhile?
Dog theft petition
A Very thought-provoking comment and i will look into it. It also may impact on the neutering of dogs at such a young age. As well as the massive overvaccination
Why are vets not required to scan any new patients?
I believe if any dog visits a vet, the first visit should include scanning the microchip as well as checking that there is no scar where a chip could have been removed. I am convinced more stolen and lost dogs could be recovered if this was the case.
Secondly, other countries have stricter criteria for selling dogs. They also have set prices for each breed. This is fervently policed by the Government of that country. All paperwork is policed thought their Kennel Clubs in conjunction with the Government, including money laundering departments.
I know for cross breeds that doesn’t equate but if all dogs had to be properly registered and monies declared it may go some way to stopping puppy farmers.
Why are vets not required to scan any new patients?
I cannot disagree with a word you have said. They can’t be bothered if it does not make them money is the answer to the vet’s problem and closer controls on dog breeding and puppy is sorely needed, the government is playing at it. Read my article that went Viral called Is The Veterinary Profession Broken
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