Pet-Flipping

I’ve been seeing a lot on the news lately about people who steal dogs, then resell them--not necessarily to their original owners but to someone else.  How awful!  How cruel to both the dogs and their owners.

In one instance reported here in Los Angeles, six puppies were stolen out of a car while their owner paid a bill at an animal hospital.  They were only six weeks old, too young to be taken from their mother.  The puppies were being raised to be service dogs for disabled people.  That particular theft was caught on a security tape and some of the puppies were recovered--after being thrown over a fence.   

I also saw on the Today Show a story about pet-flipping.  In it, a frantic owner tried to find her lost dog--but after hearing someone had found it, and before she could claim it, a stranger claimed it first, then listed it for sale on Craigslist for $50.  When confronted about it, the thief demanded even more money to release the dog.  That thief was caught and charged with a felony.  Interviewed on TV, she was unapologetic and said she wanted the money to buy baby diapers.

Dognapping isn’t new, but there seems to be more of it going on, or at least it’s being made more public.  People use the sad situation to make money, whether they steal the dog or find it.  Either way, they either ransom or sell it to someone else by posting its availability on something like Craigslist.

In my neighborhood, I just saw, on the same pole, a poster about a lost dog--and a found cat.  I ache for everyone whose family member goes missing, either by theft or by accident.  I’m always nervous about my own dogs getting loose, especially my little Mystie who’s always been a bit elusive.  Of course I have them both microchipped and they wear tags, but nothing is a total guarantee.  And in some ways I’m glad that neither is a show quality Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.  Maybe they’re less susceptible to theft that way... or not.

How about you--have you heard about more dognappings or pet-flippings lately?  How do you try to assure that your own pets remain safe and at home with you?