Owner found random dog tag outside her house after a break-in attempt — her heart sank when police explained its meaning

A dog owner had a close call with thieves trying to break into her house in the wee hours of the night. While she and her puppy were safe after the dog chased the intruder away with her barks, the owner discovered an odd detail left behind by the criminals: an innocent-seeming dog tag hanging on her front gate. When she informed the police about the break-in attempt, she was shocked that they mentioned the dog tag. She soon realized the reason behind the little souvenir from the terrifying night. The chilling story was shared by the dog owner u/SabrinaSpellman1 on Reddit. 

Speaking of a time when her puppy had learned to use the catflap on the door, the owner revealed that her Yorkie hopped in and out of the house as she pleased, often to take leaks or poop. “Two nights ago (I've been having some personal problems), I was struggling to sleep and was kind of in and out of sleep most of the night,” the owner narrated in an elaborate post. She detailed that her bedroom was above a large garden gate that creaked. At 3 a.m., her puppy suddenly jumped out of bed and raced downstairs madly barking at someone outside. “Someone had jumped the gate, setting off the security floodlights, and her barking scared him off.” 

Soon, the barking had stopped, and the owner watched the thief run for his life through her bedroom window. The floodlights had given away his identity. However, her heart sank at the thought that the thief might have taken her pup away. She was relieved when her feisty Yorkie came back upstairs. The dog had gotten out of the catflap to catch the thief in the act and scared him away with her ferocious and loud barks. The owner informed the police about the incident the next morning. Considering the frequency of dog thefts in the area, the police took it seriously and called her back. They enquired about potential chalk marks or a dog tag left around her house. 

“There was a dog tag (like you'd have on a collar) resting on my gatepost on the front entrance of my house that just said MAC,” the owner noted. Shockingly, it was left by the dog thieves as a marker on the house for future break-ins. They used dog tags or chalk marks to identify dog households and steal the pets in the middle of the night. The police seized the dog tag and disclosed that there were similar incidents in the area. The dog owner could have lost her pet that night and decided to change her ways to ensure her pup’s safety. The catflap was made off-limits, and her Yorkie was not allowed to go anywhere without her. Nevertheless, her puppy was her “little hero” of the night. 

The post with 748 votes caught the attention of fellow pet owners from around the globe. u/SpecialistOil3 acknowledged that smaller dogs are mostly targeted by dog thieves in the UK. “It's been happening here in my neck of the woods in Canada. However, they aren't stealing dogs for resale. They are stealing dogs for bait dogs!” said u/Veelio.