Reward offered for dog stolen by impostor after it wandered from home

A $1,000 reward is being offered for an arrest in the case of an English bulldog stolen from a pet day care facility in northern San Diego County.

A man convinced workers at Dogtopia in San Marcos that the 5-month-old dog was his, the sheriff’s department said. As captured on surveillance camera, the man took the dog in his arms and disappeared.

In fact, the dog, named Schroeder and purchased for $4,000, belonged to a local woman. The dog had wandered away from its home. A dog-lover found the dog and took it to Dogtopia, the sheriff’s department said.

Within an hour, a man arrived at the business and told workers that the dog belonged to him. How he knew that Schroeder was there remains unclear.

Anyone with information about the man or missing dog is asked to call the sheriff’s department at (858) 565-5200 or San Diego County Crime Stoppers, which is offering the reward for an arrest and return of Schroeder, at (888) 580-8477.

tony.perry@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATsandiego