AN ANGUS COUPLE, devastated yesterday after discovering the theft of five highly prized and valuable puppies, are offering a reward of £1000 if they can get all of them returned safely.

Noted breeders and exhibitors of Newfoundland dogs Joe and Jane Duffy discovered the puppies, valued at £1000 each, missing early yesterday morning.

They had been taken from a kennel containing a litter of seven.

Though the kennel is just outside the back door of their countryside home on the outskirts of Montrose, in a night of heavy rain the couple heard nothing.

They reckon the thieves pounced in the early hours of the morning.

“We had given the puppies their last feed at midnight,” said Mr Duffy.

“We had gone to bed after that, but it was a night of pouring rain and other than the rain we heard nothing.”

They can only guess two of the puppies were left behind because the thieves had not been able to carry all of them at once to their vehicle—probably left parked on the main road around 400 yards from their home—and they had not wanted to risk more than one trip to the kennel.

All the more galling is that the puppies, just six weeks old, had just been moved from the house out into the kennel.

Mr Duffy said, “From five feeds a day they have recently been reduced to four feeds, and it is vital that routine continues and they are given a proper puppy diet. We are worried sick about them.”

Three puppies, two black and one brown, and two bitches, one brown and the other black, were stolen. One had been earmarked for stardom as a future prize-winner in the show ring.

“We just occasionally have litters to give us young dogs to bring on for showing and we had decided on which one of the puppies we would be keeping,” said Mr Duffy.

The couple have been showing Newfoundland dogs for 10 years with considerable success, producing several Crufts winners.

They moved from Guthrie near Forfar to their Montrose home a year ago, because apart from an acre and a half of ground for the dogs to exercise in they believed it would offer them more security.

“We really treasure the dogs and can hardly believe this has happened,” added Mr Duffy.

“We would appeal to anyone who knows anything at all about this or who knows of somebody suddenly taking delivery of a Newfoundland puppy to contact the police immediately.”

A police spokesman said, “There is genuine concern for the welfare of these puppies. We would appeal to anyone who may have been in the area and who may have seen anything suspicious to contact us on 01307 302200.”