Dog missing, dog stolen!

These messages appear more and more frequently on social networks.

During the lockdown, more than three million Brits bought four-legged companions.

But the sharply rising prices are also attracting more and more thieves.

Thousands of cases have already been reported.

Sometimes a dog disappears from a meadow, sometimes kidnappers even access gardens or dog houses.

The hustle and bustle of the "Dognapper" moves the animal-loving British.

Even Prime Minister Boris Johnson has taken up the issue and threatened tougher sentences.

Dog theft causes victims "great pain and distress," said Johnson, who keeps the Jack Russell hybrid Dilyn on Downing Street.

Philip Plickert

Business correspondent based in London.

  • Follow I follow

    Last week, at lunchtime, burglars got into a house in the town of Arnold, Nottinghamshire, and stole eight French Bulldog puppies and their mother Luna.

    The case made the BBC news.

    The police suspect it was a "targeted break-in" aimed at the dogs.

    For a bulldog puppy, prices of 2000 to 3000 pounds (2300 to 3500 euros) are now common.

    In the spring, the police in Nottinghamshire specially seconded a commissioner who only looks after dog theft.

    Prices for some breeds have doubled

    2,438 cases were reported last year, an increase of almost 20 percent over the previous year. This was the result of inquiries from 37 of the 43 regional police districts. Since the third corona lockdown in winter and spring, the thieves are said to be even more active. The increasing interest of dog catchers is also due to the astronomical prices that Britons, bored with lockdown, are willing to pay. In the first six months of the corona pandemic, they more than doubled in some cases for the most popular dog breeds.

    For example, the average asking price for a Chow Chow on Internet sales platforms rose by almost 150 percent to a good 2700 pounds, according to the Dog Trust.

    Bulldogs, also in great demand on the island, rose in price by 70 to 100 percent to well over 2000 pounds.

    The average supply for dachshunds rose from £ 1,000 to a good £ 2,000.

    "In view of the high demand and the increased prices, it is no wonder that criminals are taking advantage of the situation," says Dog Trust Director Owen Sharp.

    His organization receives eight times as many inquiries about theft as in previous years.

    Dog Trust is also concerned about the increasing number of illegal puppy smuggling cases.

    Little penalties for thieves

    The theft of pets in particular is making the headlines. So far, if caught, offenders have not been punished too severely under the Theft Act of 1968. Stealing a dog is punished like stealing something. The pain of the families whose animals are stolen has so far played almost no role in court. The Johnson administration has now set up a working group to come up with measures for better protection.

    Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said last week: "We are a nation of animal lovers, and many of us have sought a pet as a society during the pandemic, making the rise in thefts particularly cruel and shocking for many." The task force should "take every possible option "Investigate to protect families from the" shameful crime ". Boris Johnson was not the only one to express his disgust. Shadow Labor Minister David Lammy said: "The terrible thought that my dog ​​might be stolen keeps me up at night." The current law is insufficient to deter organized gangs.

    Very few perpetrators are ever convicted, says Dan Allen of Keele University, who studies the relationship between animals and humans. He estimates that no more than one percent of dog thefts end up in court. "And then the most likely thing is that the perpetrators will receive a fine or suspended sentence."