'Twiglet' the dachshund stolen by man with hammer reunited with owners after tip-off
28 July 2023, 11:06
Moment 'Twiglet' the dachshund stolen by man with hammer
Twiglet the Dachshund has been reunited with her owners after a masked thief who disguised himself as a delivery driver stole her in a "targeted" burglary.
The 16-month-old puppy was "a little subdued" following the incident, having been returned to her owners at 11pm on Thursday.
Her owners said she had become "too hot to handle" after an appeal to hunt her down went viral.
One of Twiglet's owners said in a Facebook post: "Everyone… we have the most amazing news… Twig is home!!!
"She’s a little subdued by the whole experience but a tip off this evening (via FB) from someone that had seen all of the publicity and awareness, has meant we were able to be reunited about 11pm.
"We can’t thank everyone enough for all of the posts and reposts and noise that has meant that she most likely did become 'too hot to handle'.
"We are blown away by how amazing people have been and want to thank you all so so much."
It comes after police released disturbing CCTV footage of the masked burglar stealing Twiglet in broad daylight from her owners' house in the town of Saffron Walden.
The video showed the culprit, dressed in a hi-vis jacket with blue jeans, white trainers, gloves and a baseball cap, entering the property around 3pm on Wednesday.
Alarms sounded as he snatched the frightened dog, wrestled her to the floor and carried her away.
Twiglet's owners Jo Vindis, 43, her husband Jamie, 47, and their two children, aged 12 and 14, have been traumatised by the theft.
Speaking to the Dail Mail Ms Vindis, a vet who was at work during the break-in, said she was unable to watch the "horrifying" video properly.
"It was quite a small window so they must have been watching. She had been out with dog walker all morning and I had gone back to work. It seemed very targeted, it's what he wanted," Ms Vindis said.
"We're kind of thinking she was stolen to order. He likely targeted her and knew that she was valuable - they are quite a popular breed. It wasn't just an opportunistic thing.
"Within a few minutes of him breaking the glass door and the alarm going off the neighbours were checking it out," Ms Vindis explained.
Ministers announced plans in 2021 to make dog abduction a specific offence punishable by up to five years in jail, through the Kept Animals Bill. But the bill was quietly dropped in May.
Data from UK police forces show at least 1,620 dog thefts were reported in 2022, with more than 1,750 individual dogs stolen.
Essex Police are continuing to appeal for witnesses or anyone with information that might be able to help with the investigation.
Enquiries remain ongoing and no arrests have been made at this stage, the force said.
