Pregnant Dog Stolen Off Front Porch: Police Ask for Help Identifying Thief

By Amanda Thomason March 17, 2023 at 11:03am

While many people have experienced having their dog get loose or lost, learning that someone has stolen your dog is a different sort of heartbreak.

One family in Prince George’s County, Maryland, has video footage that proves their pup was taken off their porch — and their dog is still missing.

Doorbell camera footage shows that around 5:35 a.m. on March 6, a woman wearing slippers walked onto the porch of a house in District Heights and approached the family’s 5-year-old Dachshund mix, Canela.

The dog barked repeatedly as the woman approached and knelt down, and it even lunged at her as she closed in, but the woman appeared unperturbed.

She told the dog to sit and waited until it settled enough for her to pick it up before calmly walking back to a person waiting near the street.

To make matters worse, Canela was pregnant, and the owners believe the thief stole her to try to sell the puppies. According to one of them, the thief had been by before and asked about the dog.

“Sometimes she was outside by herself,” the owner told Telemundo-44, according to WRC-TV. “We feel that the person who stole her already knew about her, because one time she even talked to daughter, asking her if that was her dog. And my daughter said, ‘Yes.'”

On Wednesday, the Prince George’s County Police Department released the footage of the thief and asked for the public’s help identifying her.

“Please watch: detectives released video of the suspect who stole a dog recently from outside of a District Heights home,” the department’s Facebook post read. “The dog is a five-year-old female Dachshund breed named Canela.

“This theft occurred on March 6, 2023, at approximately 5:35 am, in the 6200 block of Foster Street in the unincorporated section of District Heights.

“In video, the female suspect is seen coming onto the porch of the home and approaching the dog. She ultimately takes the dog. A second suspect is believed to be involved in the theft.

“If you recognize this suspect or have any information on Canela’s whereabouts, please call 301-516-5230 and refer to case number 23-0013648.”

Commenters wrote in to warn people not to leave their dogs unattended and express their frustration on the owner’s behalf. Others had pithier bits of encouragement.

“She can’t be far,” one commenter replied, referring to the thief. “She is in fuzzy slippers.”

Hopefully, with the video circulating online, someone will recognize the culprit and help reunite the dog with her original family.

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