# Has anyone ever had a dog stolen?



## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

Has anyone ever had a dog stolen?

You might think I'm crazy for asking but I have reason to be concerned I think. I live in a nice area on a big corner lot and small back yard so often my dog is tied up out front when I'm out with him playing. I don't leave him chained up unsupervised or anything like that. Over the past couple of months I noticed this same women keeps driving by and sometimes parks on the street and will sometimes stay for 5-10 minutes. She usually only stops when she doesn't see me out otherwise she drives on by. Sometimes even if I'm out she see's me and will still stop. I went to approach her the other day and she drove off. Suspicious behavior for sure right? I know the entire neighbourhood and do not recognize her or her vehicle as anyone that lives within the immediate area. I have yet to get a license plate number but have recorded her twice now on video parked out front of my place watching the dog. My neighour also has a a nice surveillance system and one camera faces my property so he has given me weeks of footage that I'm going through now but that is so time consuming. 

I'd like to think Jake would protect the property and in the house he would, but if someone pulled up and said "car ride!" he would definitely take off with a stranger. Car rides are the best thing in the world to him. I havent reported anything to police yet and trying to get a plate number so at least I can file something so if something were to ever happen we have a place to start. I know it sounds like I'm very paranoid but where I live it's only local traffic coming through as you can't get to any mane streets from here, and she stops and watches us. It's one thing if she just likes to watch him but when I try to approach her she drives off. I asked my neighbour about it and he said he's noticed she has been coming around as well. 

What do you all make of this? I don't know what else she would be doing around here or what she has in mind other than looking for an opportunity to take off with the dog. I'm always around when he's out so that would never happen but it still bothers me. Once I get a plate number I'm going to file a report with the police as a suspicious person or whatever I can I guess. Not much else I can do as she isn't breaking any laws but it is odd for sure right?


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

Thoughts also go threw my head that it might be the previous owners wanting him back now that he is healthy and doing well. His story is that his previous owners were going to get rid of him and take him to a shelter if no one picked up. He was a mess at the time and I rescued him through a local kennel so I never met the previous owners. He was signed over to me and everything like that but I really hope I don't have someone stalking or looking for an opportunity to take him.


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## BellaLuna (Jan 27, 2013)

My neighbors had their min pin stolen from the yard, so they say honestly I think a hawk swooped down and took it seeing how it was teeny and left alone in the yard...

They also have a gorgeous Gsd that is always outside with no locked gates and easy access to him..

He's such a beautiful friendly dog anyone could snatch him up, I could have gotten him like a thousand times if I were a dog Napper. While I have told them of my concerns for him they didn't seem to worry much so what can you do :/

I never leave my two unattended outside for this very matter. Plus I hear a lot of stories that spook me... 

Just keep a watchful out and hopefully nothing happens and she's just a weirdo or something lol 

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## LaRen616 (Mar 4, 2010)

I would not leave your dog outside unattended!

I would also contact the police once you find footage of her you can give a better description of the vehicle she is driving.


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## PhoenixGuardian (Jul 10, 2013)

I have never had this happen, we live in a rural area, but I have heard of it. My mom was worried, because one time a man pulled in, driving a large closed in truck. I popped around the corner with Phoenix, who was hackling and barking and the guy stopped. I was holding Phoenix but asked if I could help him. Lol Phoenix struck terror into his heart I think. My Mom has a beautiful Mastiff, Zuess, and the guy was asking if he was intact. He said he had "seen him several times before, and wanted to know if we were interested in breeding." My Mom is afraid that he didn't think we were home, and wanted to take Zuess, because all of our cars were pulled around to the back o the house so it looked like no one was home. We don't trust people a lot, but Phoenix would definitely have something to say about a stranger taking one of his buddies into their car! 
Could you call animal control and see if maybe they could tell you about the past owners? Maybe they would know, or have heard of someone stalking dogs. Seriously, be careful.


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## Nigel (Jul 10, 2012)

Our neighbor across the street almost lost her two boxer pups. I was out working in my front yard and noticed a white chevy astro van making several trips up and down our block, slowing down in front of the house with the 2 pups. I didn't realise what they were up to until the next door neighbor of the boxers came out yelling at the people in the van. Turns out one of the occupants had gotten out of the van halfway down the block and walked up to pet the pups through the fence and we believe, open the gate while they did. They got back in the van at the end of the block and started driving back and forth waiting for the pups to wander off on their own. When the pups got out and wandered down the sidewalk, the van flew up and a woman jumped out to grab them. Luckily the other neighbor realised what was happening and intervened. 

Our neighborhood is not so great, but it really doesn't matter, thieves have transportation and know where to go to find what they're looking for. Keep your pup supervised, the woman is definitely acting weird.


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

He's never left unsupervised but she doesn't always see me out and that's usually when she stops and waits a bit. It really does feel like she's looking for the perfect opportunity. Jake is protective over his property and house but his weak spot is "car ride?!" and then he will go with anyone. Even on walks when he see's open car doors or windows he'd just go and jump right in if I were to let him. 

The previous owners are 8hours away so I doubt it's them, but those were the original owners in 2011 and where or who he has been with since I do not know. Not sure how they would have been able to track me down so its likely some crazy woman. Really trying to get a plate number so at least I can report something. It's not normal behavior to be doing this and its ongoing so I'm getting more and more concerned.


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## Wetdog (May 23, 2001)

Get Jake microchipped immediately with your name and contact information. Any vet can do it.

When you see the woman parked near your house again, get a license plate number and take some pictures if you can. Then keep this information handy in case you ever need it in the future.


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## arycrest (Feb 28, 2006)

I agree about making sure he's microchipped. 

If it were me I'd call the police and give them any information you can ... picture of the woman's car ... maybe even a picture of her in the car ... license plate number if at all possible ... maybe you can even ask neighbors to help get the plate number if/when they see her ... whatever ... and then ask the police what you should do since it seems she's casing been your house. It could be they could get there if you call when she parks even without the plate number.


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## SoCal Rebell (Jun 3, 2009)

I had my GSPup stolen from me once, he was gated up in the back yard and when I wasn't hope someone kicked my wooden gate down. Ain't nothing worse then having your puppy stolen, I was really pissed.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

she may be 'casing' your house as well,,how do you know she isn't around when you aren't home???

I would take the video to the cops NOW, and still try to get a license plate number, I would also get some type of sign and hang on your front door/back door..saying something like, "area is being videotaped"..


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## Nigel (Jul 10, 2012)

JakodaCD OA said:


> she may be 'casing' your house as well,,how do you know she isn't around when you aren't home???
> 
> I would take the video to the cops NOW, and still try to get a license plate number, I would also get some type of sign and hang on your front door/back door..saying something like, "area is being videotaped"..


The signs helped at my work for people illegally dumping their garbage. We do have cameras now, but at the time we posted them we did not, the dumping did stop though. Maybe put a sign up she can see from where she is stopping, if that's possible.


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

Thanks for all the input guys. 

I have her on video with my GoPro, its only like 20 seconds of footage but does show her out front of my house and even my face and Jake in the video. I have some sony HD webcams that have blue lights on them, I put one in the front window, its not recording but it looks like it would be. I've spoken with a neighbour who has a nice survalane system installed and he offered to help install it if I go out and get one.

I personally know a LEO and going to ask them next week how I should approach and file this. The more I get thinking about it the more I think her intentions must be bad. She must want to either take him or perhaps she hates the breed or dogs in general and would try and wait for an opportunity to poison him? Who knows. This world is full of crazy people so it wouldn't surprise me. Now I don't even want to leave him home alone when at work.

EDIT: I will get him micro chipped next week as well. I wasn't going to do so until our next scheduled vet visit in a few months but I won't be putting that off now.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

I don't blame you for being paranoid 

I adopted a gsd from an idiot who filled me with lies from the get go (she was 12 wks old)...Unfortunately dumb me, believed him at first,,said the dog had to go, he was 'shipping' out in 24 hours, breeder wouldn't take her back, she was a PITA, (rescue had called me to get her because I was near by)..

Anyhow, I took her, with the intention of fostering her, I failed, but anyhow!,,I asked the breeders name, he gave me some woman's name a few towns over..

I was stupid, I gave him my address/phone number in case he ever wanted to check on her..DUH..big mistake..He called me two nites later, telling me he was on a submarine, couldn't say 'where', it was top secret stuff LOL..asking about the dog..I told her I ws keeping her..

I THEN tracked down the breeder to get more info..When I called, the woman told me some background on the sire/dam,,and then said the JERK was HER BOYFRIEND and he was sitting right there!!! 

She did not want the dog back, she was a PITA, a litter of 10,,HE now wanted her back..No way I got really paranoid, he knew where I lived..I was afraid everytime I left that I'd come home to a house ransacked, because after contacting authorities I found out he had a rap sheet a mile long for B & E's(

Luckily I never heard from them again, BUT, it's made me suspicious of suspicious stuff!


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## tottie86 (Aug 23, 2013)

Sounds very suspicious to me!!! I would call the police ASAP and let them know of the current situation!!

I used to be worried about max being stolen especially when I first left him alone (for about 20 minutes) Luckily I have good neighbours who keep an eye out, 6 metre high fences, an electric front gate and I live on a very busy main road. 


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

don't leave your dog outside unattended. set up a stake out.
ask your neighbor or neighbors to help. give the police whatever 
you have.


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

doggiedad said:


> don't leave your dog outside unattended. set up a stake out.
> ask your neighbor or neighbors to help. give the police whatever
> you have.


Jake has never been left unsupervised and always in my sight. He wont leave my side as is so I know he's safe when I'm home but it's concerning for sure that I keep seeing this same lady. Neighbour's are all great and are on the look out for me as well. They are all dog owners as well so they share the same concern. I helped in an arrest last year on something completely unrelated and have been in touch with that Officer since, I also run into a Officer that is usually out front of the school around the corner on our morning walks. I'm going to talk to both of them before formally filing a report. I'm even thinking of uploading the two small clips I do have on youtube and liveleak but I think I'll hold off on that for now. I don't want to get myself into any kind of trouble in doing that.


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## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

i dont get what the problem is? if you see a suspicious car sitting outside your house why dont you just call the cops and tell them to come talk to the women? its not like she can just drive off from them? if she really is wanting to steal your dog, a talk with the police will probably scare her away. just call the cops? why do you need to put videos on youtube and etc wasting your time?


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## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

but honestly you just sound like one seriously paranoid person. what are you filing a report of? some lady sitting in her car on a public road? you say you live in a nice neighborhood with neighbors who have security cameras/alarms so i assume you do too? you say you actually approached the car so she knows you've seen her. i'm sure your dog is pretty but its not worth much without papers. i dont think she's going to pull out all the stops to steal or kill your dog. its much more likely she's just stalking her ex boyfriend that lives somewhere down the block. but since you're paranoid why dont you just put a pad lock on your dogs crate when you leave and set your alarm?


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Well, I called 9-1-1 for the neighbor's fire alarm going off yesterday or the day before. Anyway it took 20 minutes for the first responders to arrive. Unless this lady is hanging out for 5-10 minutes, calling the police to be able to catch her at it, probably is a no-go. 

Getting the license plate number and getting her on tape, while totally protecting your dog makes a lot more sense.

Maybe she likes the dog. Very possible. 

Maybe she is crazy, hates GSDs, and is looking for an opportunity to poison your dog, so beware of anything your dog might find in the yard. 

Maybe she is an animal rights activists and is trying to monitor whether or not this dog deserves better. The only dog I have heard of these idiots stealing are dogs that were seriously neglected, on death's door. But then in the population of Animal Rights people there are probably more than a few crazies who will go after any dog that is tethered, given the opportunity.

More likely though, she wants the dog for some reason. Bait dog is always a possibility, stealing dogs for research labs is a possibility as well. The thing is, there are a lot of tethered dogs out there to steal, and any of them would suit. Why is she zeroing in on yours, and coming back again and again.

An awful thought is that she may have taken a photo of your dog, either an on-line photo that you have posted, or in one of her stops took pictures, and actually found a buyer for your dog. Now all she needs to do is scoop him up, and ship him. 

I wonder if it is someone who has lost their dog, and thinks this dog is hers. But why wouldn't she talk to you about it? She wouldn't if she thought you stole her dog. 

I am sorry you are going through this. I agree with getting as much info as possible and running it through your local police department. And getting the dog chipped.


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## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

selzer said:


> Well, I called 9-1-1 for the neighbor's fire alarm going off yesterday or the day before. Anyway it took 20 minutes for the first responders to arrive. Unless this lady is hanging out for 5-10 minutes, calling the police to be able to catch her at it, probably is a no-go.


right because calling the cops to report a suspicious person outside your house and calling to report a fire alarm (not even a fire) is the exact same thing. 

and right the common sense thing to do when someone parks outside your house over and over is to take videos and write down license plate instead of just calling the cops to talk to the person directly.


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

boomer11 said:


> i dont get what the problem is? if you see a suspicious car sitting outside your house why dont you just call the cops and tell them to come talk to the women? its not like she can just drive off from them? if she really is wanting to steal your dog, a talk with the police will probably scare her away. just call the cops? why do you need to put videos on youtube and etc wasting your time?


Because calling the cops wont get the response time needed and if you read my posts would you not agree that it is a problem? If it's not I guess I have nothing to worry about and will just let strange people in the neighbourood to hang out and watch our dogs... Thanks for the advice. Sounds solid to me. 

I'm taking steps and doing what I can. I guess its not a problem though and I'm just paranoid.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

boomer11 said:


> right because calling the cops to report a suspicious person outside your house and calling to report a fire alarm (not even a fire) is the exact same thing.
> 
> and right the common sense thing to do when someone parks outside your house over and over is to take videos and write down license plate instead of just calling the cops to talk to the person directly.


A fire alarm in a trailer out in the country can be an emergency. But your right, I told them I did not smell smoke. The fire alarm did though. Trailers are fire-traps, so I kind of expected them to zip out there pronto. The thing is, people from the area, the volunteers, have to be notified, get to the station, get equipment on, and then get the truck out there. That took about five minutes longer than the first responder. 

The sherriff deputy may already have his equipment and be in his car, but he might be on a call in the southern, western, eastern or northern end of the county. And when you call after midnight to say you are hearing a woman calling for help in the woods on your property, they might just tell you to deal with it -- this actually happened here. Ashtabula County Sheriff's Office refuses to respond to call...... - AR15.Com Archive

So my point is that the cops might come, but they probably won't catch her in the act of stalking the dog, if that is what she is doing.


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## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

yeah i did read your post. you said this lady sometimes sits there for 5-10 minutes. i dont know where you live but cops dont take more than that to respond to a call unless you're talking about traffic accidents. a cop can ask her what shes doing, run her license plate, check her license for warrants, and log it in their computer. what does a 20 second video of her sitting in her car do for you?


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

Thansk selzer, my thoughts exactly. 

It's not as easy as just calling 911 and having them show up when the person will have already had left, and if I approach them myself they drive off. I havent seen her in about a week now but this has been ongoing for about 3months now. It's a pretty closed off neighbourhood and she stops and parks in an area that you cant, we have no parking on the street or anything like that. I'm trusting my gut on this one and assuming she is up to no good. 

boomer11, calling the police when she stays for 5-10 minutes will do nothing. We had a kid smash the windows of 3 trucks and someone's front window, and then a home invasion a block over by his friends. We waited an hour for them to show up and arrest. Calling them for something like this they wouldnt even show up, they have better things to be doing, literally.


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

boomer11 said:


> yeah i did read your post. you said this lady sometimes sits there for 5-10 minutes. i dont know where you live but cops dont take more than that to respond to a call unless you're talking about traffic accidents. a cop can ask her what shes doing, run her license plate, check her license for warrants, and log it in their computer. what does a 20 second video of her sitting in her car do for you?


The videos will be continued evidence that she is sitting out front of my property for no reason... Should I type that in another language to help understand? Illegally parked as well. And speeds off when approached.


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## Mrs.P (Nov 19, 2012)

That is strange. I would keep trying to approach her. Seems to scare her off. If she knows that you know she is there and have seen her maybe even make it clear you are recording her, approach her with a video camera, she will get spooked off for good!


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I probably would call your local department's non-emergency number and explain what is going on, that you are not sure if she is checking out your house or your dog, as she usually does this when he is out there. 

Ask them if you should file a report or something, just in case something does happen. 

In good neighborhoods people do call for people acting suspiciously, and cops do talk to them to try to figure out what they are doing there, or at least to let them know that people are not totally blind so take whatever you are thinking about doing eslewhere. 

Is it possible that the lady is on a lunch break or something and is pulled over to talk on the phone? My sister drives around when she is ticked off. It helps her to stay married. Only she drives talking on her phone. Another person might prefer to pull over to text or talk on the phone. 

Another awful thought is Halloween. There are weirdows out there that do awful stuff to critters around Halloween. Here they will stop all adoptions of critters prior to Halloween.


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## GreenCo (Sep 26, 2013)

Mrs.P said:


> That is strange. I would keep trying to approach her. Seems to scare her off. If she knows that you know she is there and have seen her maybe even make it clear you are recording her, approach her with a video camera, she will get spooked off for good!


That seems to be effective. I always have a GoPro camera and my phone on me and she knows at least once I have recorded her. All the neighours are on the look out now as well which will help. It's not normal for stuff like to happen in the area so everyone is on high alert type thing.


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## OriginalWacky (Dec 21, 2011)

boomer11 said:


> yeah i did read your post. you said this lady sometimes sits there for 5-10 minutes. i dont know where you live but cops dont take more than that to respond to a call unless you're talking about traffic accidents. a cop can ask her what shes doing, run her license plate, check her license for warrants, and log it in their computer. what does a 20 second video of her sitting in her car do for you?


Ahahahaha. Because every single place has cops that do respond quickly? I've lived places where it's common for it to take over an hour to see a police response, even in emergency situations. 

In her post she also said she is trying to get her license, and going through footage to find video of this car, so she's already doing what she can. I don't agree at all with you that she is being paranoid about this. 

I do agree with selzer on calling the nonemergency number and asking what would be best to do.


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## Lastofhumanrace (Jun 3, 2020)

Walk up to her and ask her what the heck she is doing parked by your house/yard etc!

My service dog was stolen. I rescued her & had her over 2 yrs when her previous owner began stalking me. She walked right in to my brother’s house, grabbed Fiona and ran out, jumped in the car with someone and took off with my baby. My brother immediately called the police & was told it was a “civil matter.” 
it took us over a week of going to the police department every day just to get an incident report. About 3 wks later I went to the girl’s apt complex & distracted her while she was walking Fiona and my boyfriend came by and put Fiona in his car and drove off... she called the police & said I attacked her & I got arrested & charged with second-degree robbery. She had 0 proof of ownership, except a vet bill from during the 3 wks she had taken her. While we were going to court, the judge ordered shared custody. I complied reluctantly… She never brought Fiona back. They dropped the charges against me and a week later the girl was back in jail. She got 7 years for a probation violation. Now Fiona is in her mom’s basement & I have been told I have to file a civil suit to get her back. And of course the courts have been closed because of COVID-19. 
so good luck with a microchip or the police Helping you get your dog back if it ever gets stolen.


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## Fodder (Oct 21, 2007)

7yr old post.


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