Love 'Em & Leave 'Em Professional Pet Sitting in Newburgh recently shared a very scary reminder to keep an eye on your pets.

Yesterday morning Love 'Em & Leave 'Em posted a Facebook status with details of an attempted dog snatching.  The person who reported it says a car with Kentucky plates was spotting in their neighborhood driving by as they let their dog outside.  The person who reported this incident said that the car stopped at the edge of their yard where there dog was when the owner closed the door to go get a treat for the dog.  When the owner opened the door back up to give the dog a treat, they heard a woman's voice saying "come here" to try and coax the dog over to the car.

Thankfully when the owner called the dog, the dog came right back to them, and went inside safely. The owner reported this in the Bellwood Subdivision off of Bell Road in Newburgh, it's located off of Bell between Oak Grove Rd and Telephone Rd.

Tony_Thompson Thinkstock
Tony_Thompson Thinkstock
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Dog snatching unfortunately is not uncommon.  Thieves steal dogs for all kinds of reasons. According to Paws.org, some of the most common reasons are:

  • While all dogs may potentially be stolen for various reasons, the stealing of pure bred dogs, to then sell to unsuspecting buyers is not uncommon,  because purebred dogs can be worth a good chunk of change.
  • Some steal the dogs then wait for a reward to be posted, and collect the money after claiming they "found" the dog.
  • Some steal the dogs to sell them to laboratories for testing (while this is illegal, it does happen).
  • Some also steal pets to use as "bait" when they're training dogs to fight.
  • Some may send the pets to puppy mills to sell them as breeders. This is another reason it's so important to make sure your pet is spayed or neutered as the puppy mills can't use them.
  • (source)

While it's scary to think of these things happening to your beloved pet, there are ways to help prevent pet theft:

  • Keep pets indoors, especially when you aren't home
  • Don't let your pet (even your cat) roam freely in the neighborhood
  • Make sure your pets are microchipped, and have up to date tags on with correct information. Especially make sure the chip is updated. I
  • Keep dogs on  a leash when you go for a walk
  • Do not leave your pets in a car (even though if it is hot outside, this is very dangerous, it's still dangerous to leave your dog in a car where someone can break in and take them if they want).
  • Keep a close eye on your neighborhood, and report any suspicious activity to your neighbors and police.
  • (source)

This situation could have been very sad, but thankfully the dog's owner was vigilant and when they noticed something suspicious they reported it.  if you'd like more information on how to keep your pets safe, PAWS.org had a lot of great info here.

Thank you Love 'Em & Leave 'Em professional Pet sitters for taking time to spread the word!

Love 'Em and Leave 'Em Pet sitting
Love 'Em and Leave 'Em Pet sitting
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