Group Offers $1,000 for Return of Dog

Actors and Others for Animals offered a $1,000 reward Friday for the return of its missing mascot, a 5-year-old female Rottweiler.

The dog was noted missing from the front yard of its owner’s Sun Valley residence early Thursday. The yard is enclosed by a six-foot-high fence, leading officials of the animal welfare group to suspect that the dog was stolen.

“What we figure is somebody might have taken her for breeding purposes,” Executive Director Cathy Singleton said. “It’s a popular breed right now. She’s actually spayed but whoever took her wouldn’t know that.”

Chewbacca--named for the furry, alien Wookie character from the movie “Star Wars”--is owned by Beverly Berger, an employee of the North Hollywood-based charity. The dog weighs more than 80 pounds and has an identification number tattooed on the right leg. “She’s just a great dog,” Singleton said. “She means a lot not only to Beverly but to all of us.”

Singleton said flyers offering the reward were posted Friday in Sun Valley and Van Nuys. Local veterinarians and animal shelters had also been notified.

The late actor Richard Basehart, horrified by the cruelty to horses he had witnessed while filming in Spain, founded Actors and Others for Animals with his wife in 1971. Earl Holliman of “Police Woman” TV fame is its president, and Loretta Swit (“M.A.S.H.”) and Joanne Worley (“Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In”) serve on the board of directors.

The charity provides free spaying and neutering for the pets of senior citizens and low-income people and also assists the indigent in paying veterinary bills.

Anyone with information on the missing dog can call (818) 985 0854 or (818) 765 5997. No questions will be asked.