Several arrested, huskies home
FIVE OF SEVEN PUPS FOUND
Five of seven husky puppies that went missing from their east Windsor home early Saturday morning have been found.
Not able to open their eyes and still reliant on their mother’s milk, the 10-day-old puppies were taken from their outdoor kennel on the 4600 block of Tecumseh Road East.
Five of the huskies were returned by police to owner Jose Cornejo on Sunday around noon.
Police have arrested several suspects who had five of the puppies in their possession. At least one suspect is in custody and all of the alleged thieves have charges pending against them. Cornejo said police told him the suspects denied knowing the whereabouts of the other two puppies.
“It’s really fishy because they must know where the other two are but they just don’t want to give them up,” Cornejo said. “I’m thinking they sold them already.”
Cornejo said the suspects must have used wire cutters to create a hole in the fence of the kennel. The hole was big enough for a person to climb into the kennel and remove the puppies.
He said the dogs are only around five inches in length — fitting perfectly into the palm of someone’s hand — and cannot yet walk on their own.
“Who in their right mind would do this? At least wait until they’re old enough to eat and walk on their own,” said Cornejo, adding he’s deeply upset, worried and angry as he copes with the fact that the puppies that still remain at large may not be safe.
“I think it’s cruelty to animals, in a way.”
He said his main concern is the chance of survival his new puppies will have if they are not taken care of properly.
“First they cause damage to my property and then they actually steal the puppies. This shows that I’m pretty sure they’re not even able to take care of themselves, so why would they want to take care of these small little dogs?”
Dr. Adam Deluca, a local veterinarian, said the absolute bare minimum amount of time puppies should stay with their mother is for their first three weeks of life. For social development they should be kept with their litter mates and mother in their first phase of life.
More important, Deluca said, are the nutritional requirements for newborn puppies.
Deluca said if a proper milk replacement is not provided for the pooches, they may become ill and die. He said he questions whether the thieves would have the necessary knowledge to properly care for the puppies.
“I think anyone who’s willing morally to steal from someone, especially multiple young defenceless animals, might have some other gaps in their knowledge,” Deluca said. “You have to wonder, what motivates these people to do this and are they equipped to handle what they’ve taken on?”
He added the purebred Siberian huskies would probably sell easily for around $500 each and maybe more, but without papers to support their lineage, the value drops.
Cornejo said several teens from his neighbourhood have frequently stopped by recently to check out the huskies and their new brood.
The puppies’ parents were in the kennel during the time of the theft.
Cornejo believes the bandits were probably feeding them treats and may have been familiar faces to the dogs, which may be the reason the parent huskies did not attack them.
He said he has moved the pooches to a safer area and will be careful about who to trust around his animals from now on.
Police said the investigation is ongoing and are asking that anyone with information regarding this theft, or anyone who is offered a young husky puppy, contact Windsor police detectives at 519-255-6700, ext. 4830 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 519-258-TIPS (8477).