Battersea Dogs & Cats Home have reunited a worried owner with her Golden Retriever after she was stolen from her in broad daylight in North London. 
Nine-month old Sheba was taken into Battersea after her owners could no longer look after her and the animal rescue charity checks all animals for a microchip and discovered that Sheba had been reported as stole and missing since June 2018.
Sheba had been snatched away from her original owner, Neha Popat when she had left the dog outside a shop with the store manager, while she was inside. It’s though that the dog was then sold on to unsuspecting new owners.
Neha had nearly lost all hope in finding her dog again but received the all-important call from Battersea in October when the Lost Dogs & Cats Line were able to track her down through her microchip details.
Neha said of the reunion: “As soon as I realised it was Battersea calling me, I just knew it was about Sheba. I felt quite overwhelmed and so ecstatic that not only had they found Sheba, but she was unharmed. I came to collect Sheba as soon as I could, and it was really emotional to see her again. I think Sheba was a bit confused at first, as she’s still quite young and she spent four months with someone else. I’m so glad she is home with us now.”
The Lost Dogs & Cats Line started 20 years ago with the first lost pet report being made in November 1998.
Every year, Battersea’s dedicated Lost Dogs & Cats Line, logs around 300 reports of lost dogs and cats every month and reunites over 1000 lost animals with their owners every year. In 2017 alone, 1,185 dogs and cats were reunited with their owners thanks to Battersea.
Shirly Smith is one of the Lost Dogs & Cats Line administrators and remembers some unusual reunites: “We’ve had some unusual arrivals – everything from dogs being found on buses to cats being found in Royal Mail postal vans. The reunites that really stand out to me though are those when a dog or cat has been missing for a long time, and finally ends up at Battersea for whatever reason.
“We deal with all emotions, from people who are very upset at losing their pet and are asking lots of questions about what to do, to those who are absolutely overjoyed that we have their missing dog or cat. It’s certainly a rollercoaster of emotions working on the Lost Dogs & Cats Line, but those incredible happy moments when you see the dog rush into the arms of its relived owner makes the job so worthwhile.”
Luckily for Sheba and her owner it was a happy ending, but Battersea couldn’t have reunited the pair if it wasn’t for a microchip. The law requires all dog owners to microchip their dog after it was introduced over two years ago.
