Unscrupulous breeders targeting family pets during the pandemic

It was a Monday night a few weeks ago, he was in the shower when he heard barking and saw the outside security lights flash on. By the time he had dashed outside, Skye was gone, tucked under the arm of thief and spirited away into the foggy night.

“They got lucky,” he adds. “Nine out of ten times there’s a padlock on but I’d just fed her and was going to take her for a last walk,” he sighs.

“It’s probably breeders. Maybe I’ll see her in three or four years time when she’s ten or 11 and no more use to them, and they throw her away.”

Meantime, if he finds the person who snatched his dog from right outside his house, he may well struggle to contain himself from lashing out, he adds.

Skye’s theft was captured on CCTV footage from a nearby petrol station. Despite social media appeals across a swathe of missing, lost and stolen pet pages, there have been no sightings and no news.  

Pinning down the precise number of dog thefts in Scotland is tricky. Police Scotland say their records of thefts do not break down incidents in a way that records individual items – such as dogs.

While without clear evidence in the form of CCTV images or eyewitness accounts, it is impossible to determine whether a dog was stolen, or simply took advantage of an open gate.

But concern is mounting that a worrying spate of dog thefts across England - where incidents have soared since the start of lockdown in March, coinciding with rocketing demand for puppies and dogs - may begin to encroach on owners north of the border.

And with pets fetching eye-watering prices on social media sites particularly among popular medium-sized breeds such as Cocker Spaniels and cross-bred ‘designer’ cockerpoos, the potential for thieves to line their pockets can be huge.

“A cockerpoo used to cost around £900, now it’s around £2,800. A Cocker Spaniel that was £800 is now £2,000 and a Jack Russell has gone from £400 to £1,000,” says Katie McCandless-Thomas, who runs a Facebook page, Missing Pets, Perth and Kinross, Scotland.

Her page recently led an appeal for four dogs stolen from two addresses in rural Perthshire on the same day in October. One, a Jack Russell called Harvey, was lifted from his kennel at Meikleour while his stunned owner watched helplessly from his home.

Harvey was later found, while of the other three, taken from nearby Forneth, West of Blairgowrie, two – both Jack Russells - were found nearly 400 miles away in the Midlands. The remaining dog, a Springer Spaniel, remains missing.

A 38-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with the two incidents.

“This type of thing has gotten worse since the start of lockdown,” adds Katie. “Demand for dogs has spiralled, they are selling for at least double the price they’d normally sell for, and I think dog theft is part of it all.

“The price of puppies is fuelling demand for more pets and people are stealing dogs thinking it’s a quick way to sell them on.

“It is bad enough to know your dog is missing, but when you suspect it has been deliberately taken, it’s a whole different situation.

“It’s devastating for the owners.

“There is a feeling that someone has deliberately targeted their dog and all kinds of scenarios run through their head of what could be happening.”

In England, charity DogLost said dog thefts in England rose by 65 per cent between 23 March, when lockdown was announced, and 1 June, compared with the same time last year.

Over the course of just two months 40 dogs were taken in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire alone, raising concerns that organised gangs are targeting mostly pedigree and working dogs, with Cocker Spaniels top of the list.

As a result, some English police forces have suggested owners change their dog-walking routines, fearing gangs might be watching popular routes.

However, social media rumours that gangs mark pavements outside dog owners’ homes with chalk or cable ties are thought to be misplaced. “A lot of thefts are opportunistic,” says Katie. “People leave their dogs tied up outside a shop and someone just walks away with them.

“People think it won’t happen to them, but it can.”

In West Lothian, dog owner Siobhan Lamont waits every day for news of Tyson, a nine-year-old Staffordshire Terrier, and year-old Staffy-Collie cross, Drax. Both dogs vanished from the back garden of their home in Armadale at the start of October.

“I suddenly realised they weren’t in the house. I went outside, and saw the gate, which had been locked, was open,” she says.

A series of mystery phone calls have added to her distress and heightened her concerns that the dogs – last spotted in nearby Fauldhouse – are being kept by someone.

“It’s heartbreaking, you don’t know what to do,” she says. “I’ve since heard of so many dog thefts or dogs going missing. The house isn’t the same without them here.”

Earlier this month, a three years old chocolate-coloured spaniel called Obie, which had been snatched from a property in Harburn, West Lothian, was reunited with owners after being found 120 miles away in Penrith.

According to Charlene Gun, who runs Lost & Found Dogs West Lothian on Facebook, dog thefts are not rife in the area, but there is cause for concern.

“Are profits increasing for people selling dogs? Yes. Are the chances of thefts quite high? I’d tell anyone to never trust anyone or take any chances,” she says.

“Are certain breeds more desirable and more likely to be picked up? Yes.

“When you are in a situation where one litter of eight puppies can earn someone around £20,000, then it’s better not to leave your dog unattended.”

If Google searches for puppies and dogs in the wake of March lockdown is anything to go by, there is no shortage of demand: searches for ‘buy a puppy’ rose by 120%, with ‘adopt a puppy’ rising by 133%.

As well as raising fears over dog thefts, demand has led to concerns of a growth in puppy farms.

Just last week more than 60 dogs and cats were seized from a suspected puppy farm in Perthshire, including three pregnant bitches and three litters of puppies.

Animal welfare charity the Scottish SPCA says it launched 78 investigations into puppy farming in October alone, and fears demand for puppies over the festive period would lead to a rise in the number of cases.

“The combination of coronavirus restrictions and extortionate prices of puppies is being manipulated by puppy traders selling badly bred dogs,” said Scottish SPCA chief superintendent, Mike Flynn.

“There are things we would urge any buyer to do, such as insist on seeing the pup they are buying at the seller’s home or premises with their mum.

“We know many dealers are telling unsuspecting members of the public to meet them in a car park or public space to pass over the dog safely.

“The seller will often be wearing a mask and afterwards they are impossible to get a hold of when the pup gets sick.”

He added: “Prices have skyrocketed in 2020 as responsible breeders scaled back due to the restrictions, yet demand increased as many people were stuck at home.

“Now, dealers can charge more than ever before and sell more easily than they’ve previously been able to.

“The root of this problem is public demand. As we approach Christmas, we are frightened by the prospect of the general public flocking to these people to buy sick and ill puppies.

“The onus is on every single person in Scotland to put this despicable trade out of business.”