Police urge pet owners to report attempted dog thefts

DOG owners are being urged to report any suspicious behaviour, thefts or attempted thefts to police. 

The plea comes following further reports online of suspicious activity in Melksham, with one dog owner reporting earlier this month that they were allegedly approached by four men in a car on Church Lane, who demanded they hand over their three dogs. 

Other experiences recently discussed online include one person being followed whilst walking their dog, and incidents of strangers photographing owners with their dogs. 

However, police say that not enough people are reporting these incidents. 

Wiltshire Police, who launched its new Dog Watch scheme back in April to help improve confidence in pet safety across the county, said, “Although cases of dogs physically being stolen are very low, we are seeing an increase in people discussing suspicious activity and the potential attempted thefts of pets on social media. However, we are urging people to make sure they report these issues to the police.” 

Inspector Gill Hughes added, “We very often see comments on social media, where people are warning other dog owners about a particular issue in a local area or an incident which they believe may have been a potential theft. 

“All of this information can be vital intelligence which can help us build up a picture of suspicious activity and hopefully take action against would-be criminals. 

“I would urge everyone to report these to us – you can either phone us on 101, or 999 if a crime is in progress, or fill in a form via our website https://crowd.in/SIJI3Y” 

To sign up to Dog Watch please go to https://crowd .in/ZmpRX9 – once you have signed up to Community Messaging – which alerts you to lots of things happening in your community – you can select Dog Watch to receive Dog Watch information.