The "Stolen or Not Stolen" Question

Has my Dog Been Stolen?

This is often one of the most difficult and yet vital questions to answer once a dog disappears and unless there has been an obvious break-in to a house or kennel,  invariable there is no more than a "hunch" to go on.

This can be so frustrating for a dog owner, particularly if they feel the police are unwilling to take action but without evidence or intelligence that a theft has occurred, it can be a hard one for the police as well.

One golden rule seems to stick out, "expect the unexpected".

There have been occasions when we have had a dog reported as stolen, with compelling evidence that they have indeed been taken, only to find two months later that there was a tragic and sadly fatal accident only hours after they had vanished.

Then on the other hand a few months ago we had two separate cases of spaniels that disappeared on a walk and whilst they were both in different counties, they bore many similarities; both spaniels were well looked after, both were on a walk with someone that was not their owner and both dogs ran off (which was not unusual), but again we were told by their respective owners, that they would always come back.

On this occasion, the spaniel that ran off into open fields and the other spaniel who disappeared into dense woodland, simply vanished.

It would be fair and sensible to conclude that both spaniels were lost, rather than stolen.

The unexpected discovery of one of the dogs collars turned at least one of these situations from a "lost dog" to a "stolen dog", as the collar was discovered many miles away from where she went missing.

With the other spaniel we had no idea she was anything but "lost", although her case was dealt with as a theft and despite the lack of evidence, the police were supportive.

Curiously enough not only did these two Spaniels disappear within a few weeks of each other, they also reappeared around the same time.

One had been sold on from a town 60 miles away from where she disappeared and was located by a chance encounter, whilst the other spaniel was abandoned and picked up a little over 20 miles away from her home. It was evident that the second spaniel had also been kept in a house or kennel as some effort had been taken to either clean her up or disguise her.

These situations reinforce how difficult it can be to answer that initial question, "Has my Dog Been Stolen?"

It also shows how important it is to "expect the unexpected" and follow all avenues, in the search for a missing dog.