91Èȱ¬

A new criminal offence of pet abduction is to be introduced as part of government plans to tackle animals being stolen.

Under current laws, if a pet is stolen it's treated as the owner losing property but the new law will recognise the welfare of animals, and that pets are valued as more than property by their owners. It will acknowledge the emotional distress having a pet taken can cause.

91Èȱ¬ Secretary Priti Patel said: "The new offence of pet abduction acknowledges that animals are far more than just property and will give police an additional tool to bring these sickening individuals to justice."

The proposal is just one of the recommendations in a report by the pet theft taskforce which was set up to tackle an increase in incidents during lockdown.

The taskforce - made up of government officials, police, prosecutors, and local authorities - received evidence from animal welfare groups, campaigners, academics and other experts.

It found that around 2,000 dogs were reported stolen last year and that seven in 10 pet thefts recorded by police involved dogs.

Using data from animal charity Dogs Trust, the report said the price for five of the UK's most desirable dog breeds grew "significantly" during the first nationwide lockdown, with some rising by as much as 89%.

The taskforce suggested it was this which possibly made dog thefts more appealing to criminals wanting to make money from the increased demand for pets.

The taskforce recommended improving the collection and recording of data on pet thefts and looked at measures such as requiring proof of identification for all online pet adverts.

It's hoped the proposals would make it more difficult for thieves to abduct and sell on pets as well as making it easier for police to catch offenders.

It is not known yet what the maximum sentence for a new offence of pet abduction might be.