stolen dog!!!!

497 Views 6 Replies 5 Participants Last post by LMMB, 2 mo ago

TeddyC89

Discussion Starter · 2 mo ago

Hi all, can anyone here please advise me. my breeder took my dog back for a two week period to help with some re-training for his separation anxiety. she has now refused to give him back and has blocked any and all communication with me. I have notified the police and my microchip company so he will flag up if his chip is scanned and I am awaiting to hear back from the police as to weather they can help me or not. I have no address for the breeder but I have spoken to the vets that she took him to for a check up while in her care and they have said they will work with us in any way they can but because she is using the same vet she registered him at when he was a pup [before i purchased him ] they didn't question her having him despite calling me to pay for the check up. my dog is registered in my name, I purchased him, he has lived with me for the last 5 years and I take care of him fully physically and financially. Am I right in thinking that because of this she has no right to take him just because she is the breeder and that the police should be able to return him to me without having to go through civil court. Thanks in advance to any and all help and advice in this matter.

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LMMB

· #2 · 2 mo ago

TeddyC89 said:
Hi all, can anyone here please advise me. my breeder took my dog back for a two week period to help with some re-training for his separation anxiety. she has now refused to give him back and has blocked any and all communication with me. I have notified the police and my microchip company so he will flag up if his chip is scanned and I am awaiting to hear back from the police as to weather they can help me or not. I have no address for the breeder but I have spoken to the vets that she took him to for a check up while in her care and they have said they will work with us in any way they can but because she is using the same vet she registered him at when he was a pup [before i purchased him ] they didn't question her having him despite calling me to pay for the check up. my dog is registered in my name, I purchased him, he has lived with me for the last 5 years and I take care of him fully physically and financially. Am I right in thinking that because of this she has no right to take him just because she is the breeder and that the police should be able to return him to me without having to go through civil court. Thanks in advance to any and all help and advice in this matter.

Hi, welcome to the forum,

What a complicated situation!

Why did the breeder take the dog back to train him for separation anxiety? (Taking him away to train for SA isn’t going to help his SA… If anything, it’ll make it worse).
Did the breeder collect him, or did you drop him off?
Has the breeder given any reason why she isn’t willing to return the dog?

If you’re in England or Wales, you could try Trevor Cooper at https://doglaw.co.uk/about-us/. Or maybe Citizen’s Advice.

Did the police give you a crime number?

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TeddyC89

Discussion Starter · #3 · 2 mo ago

hi, yes i have a crime reference number and she was the one that suggested to take him back for further training, as we were stuck with what to as medication from the vets didn't help him so we were going to get a behaviorist evolved but as we always kept in contact with the breeder she offered to help instead. my wife initially ask if she would take him back or we may have to look at rehoming as we weren't sure how to help him and we go out quite a bit. he was always fine but he changed after lockdown being with him for soo long and then having to return to work and normal life, i think he struggled to readjust. so we only went out when necessary and never for more than 2 -3 hours at a time which we consider to be the maximum amount of time to leave a dog anyway. we told the breeder that he had started to poop a lot when on walks even to the point that he would try to go and nothing come out. so we agreed that she would take him to the vet while she had him to get a baseline of condition and health which came back that he was a little over weight but nothing concerning and that the had an anal gland infection which may have been causing the pooping situation. so she asked the vet to call us for us to pay for the treatment of which we did. and all was fine the next day she messaged saying that he showed aggression towards her when she tried to force him into a crate knowing full well that he had a traumatic time with his crate when he was young [ he hurt his tail on the crate which the vet sorted but he wouldn't leave it be and he got an infection so the vet said rather then keep trying like that they believed it was in his best interest to dock the tail. all has been fine since and as i say the breeder was aware of this at the time. my dog had got out one time due to one of our sons leaving the door open while we were out on day but he was picked up by a vet and we went to pick him up and again all was well she was notified of this as she was also down as an emergency contact to which she asked the vet his condition to which again all was well. we love our dog so he is well looked after!. these are now all the excuses that she is giving as to why she will not return him. she has said that we neglect him which is why he hurt his tail and that his SA is due to us leaving the house daily and that he had this infection of which we were not aware or due to having seen no signs of distress or discomfort from our dog but it is being resolved no expense spared and without hesitation. she said all of his in one message and quiclky blocked us from all contact after. we just dont know what to.

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Shadowfox

· #4 · 2 mo ago

Did you sign a contract with the breeder at any time? If yes, that might complicate things.

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JoanneF

· #5 · 2 mo ago

@TeddyC89

Just out of curiosity, is the dog an unusual or rare breed?

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harry polard

· #6 · 2 mo ago

Did u able to find your dog?

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LMMB

· #7 · 2 mo ago

TeddyC89 said:
hi, yes i have a crime reference number and she was the one that suggested to take him back for further training, as we were stuck with what to as medication from the vets didn't help him so we were going to get a behaviorist evolved but as we always kept in contact with the breeder she offered to help instead. my wife initially ask if she would take him back or we may have to look at rehoming as we weren't sure how to help him and we go out quite a bit. he was always fine but he changed after lockdown being with him for soo long and then having to return to work and normal life, i think he struggled to readjust. so we only went out when necessary and never for more than 2 -3 hours at a time which we consider to be the maximum amount of time to leave a dog anyway. we told the breeder that he had started to poop a lot when on walks even to the point that he would try to go and nothing come out. so we agreed that she would take him to the vet while she had him to get a baseline of condition and health which came back that he was a little over weight but nothing concerning and that the had an anal gland infection which may have been causing the pooping situation. so she asked the vet to call us for us to pay for the treatment of which we did. and all was fine the next day she messaged saying that he showed aggression towards her when she tried to force him into a crate knowing full well that he had a traumatic time with his crate when he was young [ he hurt his tail on the crate which the vet sorted but he wouldn't leave it be and he got an infection so the vet said rather then keep trying like that they believed it was in his best interest to dock the tail. all has been fine since and as i say the breeder was aware of this at the time. my dog had got out one time due to one of our sons leaving the door open while we were out on day but he was picked up by a vet and we went to pick him up and again all was well she was notified of this as she was also down as an emergency contact to which she asked the vet his condition to which again all was well. we love our dog so he is well looked after!. these are now all the excuses that she is giving as to why she will not return him. she has said that we neglect him which is why he hurt his tail and that his SA is due to us leaving the house daily and that he had this infection of which we were not aware or due to having seen no signs of distress or discomfort from our dog but it is being resolved no expense spared and without hesitation. she said all of his in one message and quiclky blocked us from all contact after. we just dont know what to.

There are a few… not red, exactly, but pink flags waving for me here, and if I were the breeder, I’d probably consider them red flags:

1) Your wife phoning the breeder and saying that it might be best for the breeder to take the dog back or you may have to rehome him.

I understand she was thinking about the dog and what was in his best interests, and that it was a cry for help, but any conscientious breeder would be worrying about where the dog would end up and if the owner could manage the dogI have known ethical breeders to travel through the night to take back a puppy because the owners kept changing their minds about keeping it.

2). Twice, you mention caring for him “physically and financially,” and say you love him so he’s “well looked after”, but what about his emotional needs?

3) If the dog has separation anxiety, and you don’t have the available time to commit to helping him overcome the SA, then perhaps rehoming the dog with someone who was around most of the day - either with the breeder or with a third party, would be in his best interests?

You mention that lockdown and return to normal life has been the catalyst for his SA. You say you’re out quite a bit but never more than 2-3hrs. Does that include work? If not, how often is he left alone in total per day/week?

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