That is the case with most stolen pedigreed pets in the city. Rita Ghose finds out why getting them back is next to impossible

Goregaon resident Parag Patel is doing everything possible to get his kidnapped pug back (see box), but the dognapping on December 27 has brought to light the "almost impossible" chances of recovering stolen pedigreed pets.

Said Dr Deepa Katyal, an animal activist and veterinarian, "It is almost impossible to get back pedigreed pets. Exotic breeds, puppies and friendly dogs are the targets. I get about five complaints of missing dogs every month."

The reason, claim many, is that the police don't treat these cases seriously and hiring a detective can cost up to Rs 50,000.

Grim picture

Rajendra Khanna of Third Eye Intelligence received two cases of missing dogs a Rottweiler and a Pug last year, but could recover only the pug. "Often the culprit is the dog walker," said Khanna.
Sujeet Menezes, CEO & Managing Director, IBI Detective, said pet thieves

have a good network to locate targets and collect information. "It's a lucrative business. A Labrador stolen here can fetch about Rs 1 lakh in the Gulf."

Both said they charged a steep fee in such cases because of the difficulty in tracing dognapping gangs.
The solution?

Fizzah Shah, vice president, In Defence of Animals, India,

said, "The cops tend not to take crimes related to animals seriously. Often filing even a non-cognisable offence is difficult. We must have a separate body to investigate crimes against animals or empower the SPCA with punitive powers."

Chipping your dog doesn't help in tracking

Implanting a microchip in your dog's neck may not help you get the dog if it has been stolen. Though the chip has details of the dogu00a0- family line, owner, etc, Dr Deepa Katyal, who is the Kennel Club of India's (KCI) doctor for implanting chips, said, "We don't have a satellite network like they have in Australia to track the implanted chips. It is a huge investment.''

Implanting a chip only means that your dog can be positively identified if recovered.
"The chip, as small as a grain of rice, is implanted into the shoulder blade of a dog with the help of an injection like apparatus," said Katyal. The procedure costs up to Rs 1,500.


Case history
Parag Patel's four-month-old pug Mucu, who was kidnapped from his home, is still missing. Apart from filing a police complaint, Patel has offered a reward of Rs 50,000 for anyone who finds Mucu.