Kidnappers Targeting Bulldogs, Owners Say

An armed robbery netting three bulldog puppies over the weekend has affirmed what bulldog lovers have feared for a while now: The wrinkly, droopy breed has become the latest, er, hot dog of choice.

The stolen pups, still unnamed but worth as much as $1,500 each, were nabbed Sunday from the home of a Westchester breeder whose brother and a roommate were held at gunpoint. A fourth bulldog, an adult male named Max, was lifted from a Rancho Cucamonga backyard Friday while its owners were away.

It’s unclear whether the same ring is responsible for both incidents, police said, but a flurry of bulldog thefts in recent months has put breeders on edge and set World Wide Web sites crackling with anxiety and offers of rewards.

“It’s like something out of ‘101 Dalmatians’ or, in this case, bulldogs,” said Madeline Bernstein, Los Angeles president of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Although dognappings at gunpoint remain a rarity, animal theft has become more common in a market in which fads come and go, and thieves can bank on the sale of a popular, pedigreed pooch.

“Last year it was boxers,” Bernstein said.

Jim Walsh, a Sylmar breeder who formed a bulldog rescue network last year after losing two of his own pups to theft, agreed, saying, “There has been an increase in the popularity of the dogs. These things go in cycles. Sometimes it’s Rottweilers. Other times the Doberman pinschers are the dogs everyone wants to have.”

The bulldog cachet apparently has been enhanced by a recent television commercial for the Nissan Pathfinder featuring one of the short-legged, snub-nosed hounds hawking the sport utility vehicle.

Scott Sentonaris certainly never thought of himself as at risk when he moved in with a bulldog breeder and his brother.

But on Sunday, Sentonaris, 25, found himself with a handgun at his chin as two men posing as interested buyers grabbed the three English bulldog pups in Westchester. The thieves apparently found the house, owned by Michael Landman, through the classified ads, police said.

“When I asked them to come back later, they said, ‘Can we please see the dogs? We drove all the way from Ontario,’ ” Sentonaris said. So he let the two men into the house.

Soon the men asked if they could offer $700 as a down payment, he said.

As Sentonaris turned toward the phone to call Landman for permission, he felt cold metal against his face and heard:

“Get down on the floor, [expletive]. We’re stealing your dogs.”

*

The thieves used duct tape to tie up Sentonaris and Phillip Landman before running off with their goods--and the electronic scanner the breeder used to identify his puppies, all of whom had microchips implanted in their necks.

Los Angeles Police Det. Chuck Worthen said it is highly unusual for a dog to be the main object taken in an armed robbery.

“I’ve never heard of that before in my life,” he said.

Police are still investigating the case, but cautioned bulldog breeders to be wary of giving out their addresses.

In the Rancho Cucamonga theft, breeders Charly and Stacie Beightol were also contacted by a purported buyer who read about their bulldog puppies in the classifieds.

A man calling himself Robert and driving a blue El Camino stopped by Friday afternoon to look at the young dogs but left without offering to buy one.

That evening, when the Beightols were out, someone took 3-year-old Max, the puppies’ valuable purebred father, from their backyard. The puppies remained untouched inside the house. The Beightols said a neighbor saw a blue El Camino driving away.

“They took away a member of my family, “ Charly Beightol said.

According to Walsh and police reports, two bulldogs disappear each month.

Walsh says the dogs are sought because they are difficult and expensive to breed. Bulldog litters typically consist of no more than three puppies.

“If there’s a demand for the animal, people will do a lot of crazy things to get one,” he said.

Walsh said stolen dogs can sell for $200 to $700.

“It’s a bargain for the buyer and pure profit for the thief,” he said.

*

Another reason bulldogs remain popular with thieves is that they are docile, easily portable and represent a quicker cash return than, say, a car, Bernstein said.

“But I would hope people treat any merchandise sold on the street with skepticism,” she added. “If you see a bulldog being sold for $200 on the street, it’s probably stolen.”

Bulldogs are not only vulnerable to theft. They easily contract upper respiratory problems and are high-maintenance animals.

“I don’t think these people are really aware of what they got themselves into,” said Peggy Breckley, editor of the 500-member Pacific Coast Bulldog Club’s newsletter.

Breckley, who bred the dog that starred in the television series “Jake and the Fatman,” said bulldogs are not for everyone. “I mean, they’re not like your everyday golden retriever,” she said. “They’re docile animals that need good owners to take care of them.”

The bug-eyed creatures may be expensive to buy, breed and maintain, but owners of the stolen animals unanimously share Stacie Beightol’s sentiment:

“I just want my dog back.”