MOUNT HEALTHY, Ohio — Three people are caught on surveillance camera breaking into a pet store and stealing three puppies from the pens.
The dogs were taken from Animal House Pet Store on Hamilton Avenue late Monday night. They are still missing and Mount Healthy police said they are investigating.
“You’re helping them find good homes. And seeing people’s faces when they get to take home a puppy that they really want, that’s probably one of the best things up here,” said Maria Laug, pet groomer at Animal House Pet Store.
Laug said employees — and dogs — are now on edge after the break-in.
“You can tell it went from happy barking to completely terrified,” added Laug. “Seeing them being yanked out of the pens the way that they were, who knows what they’re doing with them now. Who knows if they took them for good intentions or for bad intentions. I just hope that they’re OK.”
The pet store owners didn’t want to go on camera, but told WCPO they think three teenagers who were in the store earlier that day later broke in through a side door. The dogs they took are two pugs, Boston Terrier mixes, and one Cocker Spaniel Pug mix.
“Very sad to know these puppies up here are somewhere out there now and who knows if they’re being taken care of or not,” said Laug.
This is not the first time this has happened. In fact, another puppy was taken from the store in 2019. Surveillance video from then shows a person picking up a Shih Tzu puppy and tucking it into a bag before leaving the store. Owner Mike Raleigh said they noticed a puppy was missing about an hour later when they went to microchip the litter.
The store is offering a reward to find the stolen puppies and the people who took them.
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