Having a pet stolen delivers one heck of a gut-punch: It’s robbery and it’s kidnapping, all rolled into one.
When the stolen pet is a valuable show dog, it’s also national news.
Riverwood’s Venustus Knight, better known just as Knight, is an AKC-registered Great Dane who is believed to have been stolen from a motor home near Santa Cruz, Calif., on Tuesday.
The 175-pound, 18-month-old, microchipped Knight is valued at $27,000, according to KION-TV. His owner, Naud Robinson, told police that upon returning from a brief trip to the grocery store on Tuesday, he discovered the dog was missing.
“He’s like my son. I’ve been inseparable from him since he was 11 weeks old since he got here from Australia. And it’s very emotional for me because I’m worried I won’t see him again,” Robinson said. “I feel they probably observed me. I can’t hardly believe that he would just walk out with them because he doesn’t walk out with me. And whoever came in and got him had a leash and collar.”
Although Robinson had been preparing Knight for future shows, the dog had not yet competed in any. His other Great Dane, a female named Lily, was not taken from the RV. Nor were electronics or other valuables, according to the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
Robinson, who bought Knight from an Australian breeder for $27,000, told officials that he had been out shopping for only an hour. He thinks the robber most likely entered the vehicle through an unlocked roll-up door and that it would have been impossible for Knight to escape on his own.
“We were tied at the hip. We did everything together,” Robinson said of his missing dog.
Questions arise: Why did the alleged robbers take one Great Dane but leave the other? Why would a three-foot-tall, 175-pound dog go away placidly with an abductor or abductors? Did Knight recognize whomever took him?
