Dani Lines, 23, (above) is offering a £15,000 reward – her life savings – for the return of her Chow Chows Bonnie and Clyde
A heartbroken dog owner has put up a £15,000 reward for the safe return of a pair of rare pet dogs who were stolen from her family home.
Dani Lines is offering her life-savings to bring back lilac Chow Chows Bonnie and Clyde after they were taken on Friday night.
Dani, 23, fears the young dogs – who have been together all their lives – may have been separated and are not being cared for properly.
The value animals appear to have been targeted by organized dog thieves who snatched the pets from their kennel which was in a large garden behind the house in Essex.
Chow Chow puppies sell for up to £4,000 each.
Dani has released CCTV showing a large white van enter a lane by her property on Friday night.
Four men are seen in the footage walking up the road towards a field behind her house.
Speaking to Mail Online, she said: ‘I’m completely heart-broken.
‘It’s a big reward because they mean so much to us. They are part of the family.
‘Bonnie and Clyde are from the same breeder and have been together since they were puppies.
‘Now I don’t know if they are still together or if they are being looked after properly. It’s really cold now, I don’t know if they are being left outdoors.
The two dogs, which cost £4,000 each a year ago, were taken on Friday evening from the fenced off garden behind Dani’s home. The thieves smashed down the fence and took the dogs in a pet carrier while the owners had popped out for an hour
Dani released CCTV of four men she suspects took the dogs who were seen walking along the road to the property on Friday
The footage also shows a large white van being driven up the road at around the time the dogs went missing from the garden
The fence to Dani’s garden where she kept the dogs was smashed and a pet carrier she used to transport them was also taken
The suspects were seen on CCTV driving along this road to get to the Essex property Dani shares with her boyfriend Tyler
‘I know they are very attached to me and obviously I love them. I’m giving everything I have to get them home,’ added Dani, whose social media appeal has been shared 4.5 million times.
The thieves struck while Dani and partner Tyler popped out to visit her father, who lives around the corner at about 6.40pm on Friday evening.
They smashed down a garden fence and put the Chow Chows into a cage and stole them from the grass field behind the house.
Dani has put up posters to help find the dogs – and her online appeal has been shared an incredible 4.5 million times
When Dani and Tyler returned an hour later they found Bonnie and Clyde had vanished. Also missing was a pet crate used to transport the dogs.
Dani told MailOnline dogs Bonnie and Clyde would have been frightened when they were snatched.
‘The thieves broke the lock on the kennel and snatched them out,’ she said.
‘I found fur where the dogs had been grabbed.
‘And a neighbour heard them barking, which they don’t normally do.
‘The dogs would have been frightened. It’s so bad. I am in bits.’
The couple were planning to breed the pair, who are just over a year old, providing puppies that would be worth thousands of pounds, due to their rare ‘lilac’ colouring.
Dani, who recently gave birth to a baby girl and has two young step-daughters, says the whole family is distraught at the loss of their dogs.
‘I don’t understand why they were stolen. They are valuable dogs but we don’t have any enemies,’ she said.
‘My step-daughters Myah and Leah don’t want to go to school they are so upset.’
She added: ‘We’re all really worried about them.
‘Bonnie is very playful. She loves cuddles and rolling around on the grass. She’s a real mummy’s girl.
‘Clyde is more manly. He likes to walk around and be the boss.’
Dani and her partner Tyler (both pictured) say they are bereft at losing the dogs and are offering their savings for their return
Essex Police have confirmed that they are investigating the theft and asked anyone with information to contact them
Last night Essex Police confirmed they were investigating the theft of the two dogs.
A spokesman told MailOnline: ‘We are investigating following a burglary where two Chow Chow dogs were stolen.
‘We were called shortly before 8.10pm. It was reported kennels had been damaged and the dogs had been stolen.’