When Angela and Giles Greenhough’s Norfolk Terrier, Ruby, turned four last week there was no birthday hug, no celebratory steak supper or game with her favourite ball which she had mischievously picked from a shop shelf and declared her own. All they could do was make a toast to the dog stolen from their farmhouse in Saltash, Cornwall, two years ago, and desperately hope that, wherever Ruby is, she is at least with Margie, their other beloved Terrier taken at the same time.
Alarming data from 31 police forces in England and Wales shows that 1,882 dog thefts were reported last year - 25 per cent more than the 1,500 offences recorded in 2020.
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