Numbers of stolen dogs on the rise in the North East

Five dogs are stolen from their owners every day in the UK, but only 1/5 are ever recovered.

That’s the story for Elaine Booty, from North Yorkshire. She let her 2 dogs out into the garden for minutes, but when she returned they’d both been stolen.

She’s searched for 3 years for Tinker and Kemp, but found nothing;

“I was absolutely devastated, I don’t have children, and Tinker and Hemp were my children and even today, now it’ll be three years on the 17th of June and I still feel sick thinking ‘where are they?’ ‘who’s got them?’ ‘Are they alive?’ ‘Are they in pain?’

“It’s the not knowing, I’ve had dogs all my life and if a pet dies you’ve got closure.

“Yes it’s really sad but it’s part of life, but the not knowing of where those 2 little dogs are – it still affects me every day.

More than 1700 pets were taken from their owners last year, an increase of almost 20% from 2014.

Durham Constabulary revealed 94 dogs had been reported stolen between 2014 and 2016 – with just 1 returned to its rightful owner. Meanwhile Northumbria police recorded 143 in the same period, with only 34 returned.

Now a North East animal charity – Newcastle dog and cat shelter – are calling for tougher sentences for people who steal animals,

They say they’re dealing with cases where animals have been stolen for use in puppy farming and even as bait in dog fighting circles.

Families are left heartbroken, while offenders risk as little as a £100 fine.

Elaine’s never found Tinker and Hemp, or even heard a trace of them, despite her extensive searching;

“Absolutely nothing, there’s been no sightings, there’s nothing, I’ve contacted Vets all over the country, I’ve had people help me – we’ve gone to Ireland, Scotland, Wales…

“I’ve got posters up from Glasgow to Sussex.”

You can see Elaine’s heartfelt plea to find her dogs on YouTube -