NEWS: Stolen terriers

By Mark McLaughlin
Edinburgh Evening News
20 October 2009

FOUR Staffordshire bull terrier puppies were stolen by "extremely callous" thieves during a break-in at a flat in Leith.

The eight-weeks-old puppies, of which two are black and two have brindle markings, were taken from a flat in Albert Street on Friday.

The Staffordshire bull terrier pups, which can be worth hundreds of pounds each, were taken when the flat was broken into sometime between 11.30am and 1.45pm.

Police have not disclosed whether anything else was taken in the raid.

A police spokesperson said: "The owner is very upset at the loss of the puppies.

"We are appealing for anyone who might have seen people acting suspiciously in the area at the time, or from anyone who has heard of this kind of puppy being offered for sale, to contact police."

It is unknown whether the dogs were stolen to order, or were the victim of an opportunist thief.

However, Leith Walk Councillor Angela Blacklock said it was possible the dogs were stolen to order as they would be likely to fetch a high price if sold on.

She said: "This is a terrible theft. I've never heard of anything like it in the area before.

"Someone must have known that the puppies were in the flat as these breeds carry quite a high value.

"A breeder would make sure that the dogs would go to a good home but now that they've been stolen who knows what will happen to them.

"If it is someone that's broken into the property and stolen them to order or for sale the could be a real problem because we don't know what kind of home they'll go to.

"It just seems extremely callous, and it's a shame if this person was a dog breeder whose gone to the expense of raising four Staffordshire bull terrier pups only to have them snatched away.

"I will be speaking to the local police inspector to find out what happened here."

Some Staffordshire bull terrier pups are currently being sold on line for up to £400.

The theft comes almost a year to the day after four pedigree Cavalier King Charles Spaniels were snatched from their kennel outside a cottage near Linlithgow in a night-time raid.

Owner Margaret Ferguson, 48, said the thieves used a crowbar to break in to the locked kennel and would have needed a car to transport the valuable pets away.

An in February 2008 a pedigree Shi Tzu was stolen from a house in Whitburn, before being killed and dumped in a bin bag near Murraysgate Industrial Estate.