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NORWALK, Conn. – An expensive 12-week-old puppy was stolen from a Norwalk store Monday morning by a man who used a child as an accomplice, the store owner said.
Update - 12:25 p.m.: We have added the survelliance video from Puppies of Westport.
Monty Kaufman, owner of Puppies of Westport, is hoping that surveillance video may lead to the return of the dog, which he says is susceptible to illness at this young age.
The license plate on the fleeing vehicle, which "nearly ran over" a pursuing clerk, turned out to have been stolen, he said.
"The very suspicious thing was the guy came in and decided to buy it in a couple of minutes, and he picked the most expensive one," said Kaufman. The suspect was a black man dressed in a blue striped polo shirt who was with a boy about 10 years old. The man tried to use an American Express Card to pay for the $4,100 English bulldog, but the magnetic stripe did not work. The clerk, Elizabeth Kantor, keyed in the numbers but was suspicious. The man showed a driver's license with his picture on it.
The video surveillance tape shows the man making a sharp gesture to the child, pointing at the parking lot. The boy immediately leaves. As Kantor works the register, the man heads out the door with the dog – and a few seconds later she dashes out after him. Another man runs out behind her.
Another angle shows Kantor being brushed aside as a truck speeds away. "I literally don't think he thought I would come after him," she said. "I saw the look in his eyes, and he gave me this look, like panic. When I went flying out he started to – he wasn't stopping and I didn't know what I was going to do. I tried to open up the handle and then I decided, let me run alongside the car for a little bit. Then he stepped on the gas, and I got a little deflected."
She got the license plate number and called Norwalk Police at about 11:20 a.m. The plate had been stolen from a car at Home Depot in Bridgeport on Sunday. The American Express card was also stolen, Kaufman said.
English bulldogs are expensive because they must be born by cesarean section and fed by hand every two hours for the first six to eight weeks of their lives, he said. Otherwise, the mothers might roll over and suffocate the babies, Kaufman said. The litters are also small.
The puppy had been sold to someone else, Kaufman said. That customer had agreed to let this puppy go to the new customer and take a dog that was due to be delivered Wednesday.
Kaufman said his wife is a "wreck, going hysterical" with concern over the dog. "It's disgusting that someone would take it out of a store like that."
Comments (12)
Watching the video, the inattentiveness and lack of concern of the three employees, you could have robbed the whole store before anyone did anything. Why was the thief allowed to hold and carry the puppy so close to the door. I'm not approving of the theft, but the store owner & employees should be more concerned and realistic about the possibility of theft and they shouldn't be so lack. Kohl's does a better job at protecting clothes.
@norwalkertoo,
I agree with you 100%. This man, and all customers should not be allowed to hold the puppies until the sale is completed.
This puppy may, or may not, be getting its special needs at this time. No doubt, Bulldogs have their issues, you can read all about the history of the breed in the NYT Magazine Cover article written a few months back. In order to ensure the survival of *this* particular animal at *this* time , its essential
1. He not be exposed to temps above 80 degrees, as bulldogs over heat very easily in the summer, and can suffer greatly, then perish due to exposure.
2. That, as a puppy without all of his innoculations, he not be exposed to other dogs, or places where other dogs have been, as this prohibits the easily transmitted disease Parvo from taking him. (That said, the risk of a stolen puppy being paraded at a local dog park are probably pretty low.....)
3. He needs his remaining innoculations.
4. That he get the right food to develop his digestive tract.
I'm sure he has more needs, but as an owner of a bulldog, I write this hoping that the perpetrator keep the best interest of the animal in mind.
Is it legal to record audio??? Didn't realize my every word was being listened to in there....
I hope the perpetrator is caught and the dog is returned to Mr. Kaufman. That said, it seems wasteful and decadent to spend $4,000 on a purebred when you can adopt from a local shelter for next to nothing. Protestors in the past have suggested that patronizing Puppies of Westport encourages inhumane breeding practices and puppy mills. I don't know if that's true or not, but why would anybody want to own a pet where there's any cause to wonder? You'll get just as much love and affection from a shelter adoption as you will from a $4,000 designer dog, you'll save a boatload of money, and best of all you might even be saving an animal from being put down.
Does it bother anyone else that this breed cannot exist unless the puppies are born by caesarean section, or that it cannot exist unless it is hand-fed by a human for the first weeks of its life? I love dogs and my pet is a purebreed, but the English Bulldog seems like a freak of human intervention. That said, I still hope this one is returned to the store quickly.
In regards to your comment Margo about English Bulldogs being a freak of human intervention. As a bulldog owner, I take ofence to that comment. Maybe you are a freak of human intervention. Its not their fault. English Bulldogs are the best family dog out there. So what if they need an extra helping hand to get started. We you say that about a baby born that needs extra help. I think your an ass and you shoud watch your comments. THis is about an innocent dog that needs to be found. Not your mean and stupid oppinion.
Hi Margo,
To answer your question, yes, I agree; it bothers me greatly. I recently thought about this very thing when I watched a bulldog try to pick up a tennis ball with her mouth. Her underbite prevented her from doing so. (She now compensates by pushing a ball around with her nose.) The underbite, combined with the bulldog's habit of "snuffling" a sort of sneezing-sniffling habit, made her an instant concern. PBS has run two documentaries called Dogs that Changed the World and And Man Created Dog. Both relate controversial genetic studies aimed to show how certain breeds were bred over time to do specific jobs. Hence, the variety of dogs we see today which scientists claim to have evolved from the wolf. Unfortunately, with interbreeding comes breed-specific health problems and what may even appear to be oddities of nature. We can only hope these "domesticated" dogs, currently living, are given the attention and love they require to live healthy and happy lives.
Thanks to the Germans, during WW1, the Marines obtained a registered English Bulldog, King Bulwark. In a formal ceremony on 14 October 1922
English Bulldogs. Teufel-hunden. Devil Dogs. They symbolize the ethos of the Warrior Culture of the U.S. Marines.
I never saw one that wasn't living a healthy happy life, so are we speaking of the same breed or have these dogs been bread right out of the breed standard? Labrador Retrievers have that issue, the standard Lab cannot weigh more than 78 pounds. I've seen some gigantic so-called Labs.
@margo
I too share your concerns, it would be ok with me if the breed's characteristics were necessary to perform useful tasks but in the vast majority of cases they clearly aren't.
I know a couple who have raised their bulldog from a pup. This breed is very sensitive and needs a great deal of TLC due to breed-specific health issues. As part of the normal adoption process, the "buyer" of this dog would, I believe, have been educated by Puppies of Westport about how to care for this special breed of dog. Unfortunately, the pup will suffer if not given the proper care it needs. This is a horrific situation and I pray the poor animal is found and returned so it has a chance of securing a responsible and loving home.
This poor little puppy. Nothing surprises me now-a-days. I hope this man is caught. Boy oh boy.....what a great role model this man is to that 10 year old.