Currently stealing a canine is handled the identical as stealing an inaminate object in Scotland, however this might change.
People who steal dogs may withstand 5 years in jail below a proposed new regulation that has been backed in a public session.
Alfie ran away when he was spooked throughout a walk, however whereas looking for him, his homeowners received an nameless tip that he might have been stolen.
“The posters had been changed from missing to stolen, and it was the day after that that we got a message to say a picture of him had been put on Facebook, so he’d been dumped the next day,” Jen Stevenson, one among Alfie’s homeowners informed STV News.
STV News“There’s been a lot of dogs going missing,” Jen’s mum Jacqui mentioned.
“To us, Alfie’s like our world… It was simply – it was terrible.
“I still can’t understand why someone would think it’s okay to take someone else’s dog, because they are a member of your family. It’s like someone’s kidnapped one of your family.”
They have been helped by volunteers at Ayrshire Dog Drone Rescue – which seems to be for lacking pups.
But the variety of stolen pets they’re now making an attempt to trace down is growing massively.
“Recently we’ve been involved with six dogs in the last three or four weeks that have been stolen,” lead volunteer Liz Milligan mentioned.
“We’ve discovered most, now we have one excellent, however it’s getting quite a bit busier.
“We take it to heart. It’s not just their dogs. We treat them like our dogs. To watch an owner go through what they’re going through is heartbreaking.”
Proposed by Conservative MSP Maurice Golden, the Dog Abduction (Scotland) Bill obtained full help from 92.4% of the 237 responses, whereas an additional 4.2% have been partially supportive.
If handed, the invoice will create a selected crime of canine theft punishable by as much as 5 years in jail.
Among these backing the invoice was the Scottish SPCA, Dogs Trust, OneKind, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and Canine Concern Scotland.
The invoice will now be lodged at Holyrood the place it can search help from MSPs as a way to be launched and probably turn into regulation.
Golden mentioned: “Ensuring that now we have a selected crime of canine theft implies that the police are supported by way of information gathering and proof gathering as a way to sort out canine theft, however it additionally ensures that justice is served for these criminals who’re stealing a household pet.
“It’s been long said dogs are people’s best friend – it’s time the law in Scotland gave them the status and protection they deserve.”
In its response, the Scottish SPCA mentioned: “Dogs are seen as members of the family and dropping a pet to theft is devastating for homeowners and for the pet. The society sees the immense worth within the human-animal bond and the advantages the connection can have on each individuals and pets.
“When a dog has been stolen this does trigger a traumatic experience for owners with expectation of police support rarely met, resulting in victims physically searching themselves, moving from local searches to regional and national searches.”
The Scottish SPCA mentioned it doesn’t imagine a worth ought to be positioned on an animal to find out the punishment for theft, or on the love between an individual and their canine.
The Law Society of Scotland mentioned it’s not against the creation of a brand new offence however would require extra proof to show there’s a want for it.
