Mark on gate post - dog theft?

Aye Bosun

Hi folks, i've heard before of gate posts been marked to help id houses that have dogs to come back and steal them when left alone.
I've come home tonight and found a blue paint blob and line coming off it on the gate, painted over it straight away just in case but just wondering of anyone has heard of this in Ireland before, found a few news stories about it in the UK and USA but nothing in ireland. I'm in SCD if that makes a difference. Any advice for me?

aonb

:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:
That is so worrying/upsetting.
Our house was broken in to two weeks ago.
They used a crowbar to smash through doors
The dog and the cat were home on their own
Hate to think of how that must have been for them
Luckily neither hurt but definately both were terrified and traumatised.
I hope your pets stay safe

tk123

OMG aonb that's terrible OP I'd call the guards and report it anyways I think? Funny we were just saying earlier how it was a bit suspicious that the clothing collection bags have started back up (even though we have a no junk mail sign!!! :mad:) One was left sticking out of the letter box this morning just after 8:00am which we thought was very early - Bailey went mad barking and growling! Normally he just gives a few barks for the post man and cries at the letters because he knows he's no allowed touch them lol!

Pumpkinseeds

You should probably report it, just in case. We've had damage done to the house when the pets were home alone and it terrified them. Make sure you don't leave the dogs in the garden unsupervised. I once saw a guy break into a house in broad daylight. Nobody paid any attention to him strolling along with a ladder. He was up that ladder and in the really small top window of that house in minutes. You wouldn't think an adult could get in such a small window.

Arbiter of Good Taste

Yes, our dog trainer told us last summer that this is going on around Dublin.

Definitely report to the gardai.

Well done spotting it and painting over it.

mister gullible

Maybe markings to do with water meter or gas installation. Was it on other gate piers?
p.s. Dark marks on the gate piers will be left by the dogs themselves...

Aye Bosun

I'll report it to the gaurds in the morning, unfortunately I never took a picture but it was as if some put their finger in a pot of paint and wiped their finger on the gate post as they walked by. Blob of paint at one end and fading off to the other, just a straight line of blue paint on a white post about 3inchs long. So not a mark for water meters or dog pee stain.
I walked up and down the road and checked the other houses but found nothing.
Benji will be staying with my folks while i'm out for the next little while

Irish Stones

Aye Bosun wrote: »

I've come home tonight and found a blue paint blob and line coming off it on the gate, painted over it straight away just in case but just wondering of anyone has heard of this in Ireland before

Have you taken a photo of that mark so to show it to the guards and see if they've ever seen such a thing before?

During my last holiday in Ireland last year I came across half a dozen of posters where desperate owners asked for help to find their stolen dogs.
How is it that this happen that often in your country? What do thieves do with these dogs?

Oops, just saw that you didn't take a photo of it...

Aye Bosun wrote: »

I walked up and down the road and checked the other houses but found nothing.
Benji will be staying with my folks while i'm out for the next little while

Do other houses around you have dogs?

Aye Bosun

Just and update..rang the guards this morning, they said I was right to be concerned but there is very little they can do. Said they'd do a some extra patrols around the area for the next few days. That's all I can do really. Just wanted to let the good folks of Boards.ie know, maybe it will help some else avoid a lot of heartache!

Thargor

Saw this walking home yesterday and thought of the OP, could be something to do with Irish Water as they were in here days ago, housing estate in Bray. no animals in this house that I ever saw and Ive been walking past every day for years:

Juran

'nothing the gardaí can do' is always the response when animals are invovled ... but tell them that a car is parked in your neighbourhood without tax and they will sent out the squad with lights flashing ....

Aye Bosun

Thargor wrote: »

Saw this walking home yesterday and thought of the OP, could be something to do with Irish Water as they were in here days ago, housing estate in Bray. no animals in this house that I ever saw and Ive been walking past every day for years:

I see where you're coming from and thanks but it was nothing like that. It was a clear line made with a finger on the top of the gate post.

Really wish I had taken a picture to show you guys. Definitely nothing to do with water or gas, rang both of them and neither have anyone working in the area at present. They are also not allow mark your property and the gate post is my property.

Benji is safe and sound and enjoying all the attention he's getting from my folks and no sign of anything untoward happening around the house

Joeseph Balls

Juran wrote: »

'nothing the gardaí can do' is always the response when animals are invovled ...

That's a bit unfair. What can they do? Set up a surveillance van for a piece of blue paint that could have been put there by anyone?

All they can do is send out a car on patrol but wether they will or not is another thing.

Alun

Thargor wrote: »

Saw this walking home yesterday and thought of the OP, could be something to do with Irish Water as they were in here days ago, housing estate in Bray. no animals in this house that I ever saw and Ive been walking past every day for years:

I saw some suspicious activity in our estate here in Bray too today. A woman and a kid going from door to door, ringing bells but not really taking any time to wait for a proper answer. Could they be just listening out for a bark maybe? They were then driven off by a shady looking character in a white Transit. I called the Gardai, and they seemed quite concerned, as if I wasn't the first person to call with the same info, and said they'd send a car up straight away which they did to their credit. It could have been something else entirely of course like casing places up for 'normal' burglaries though.

Sobko

Joeseph Balls wrote: »

That's a bit unfair. What can they do? Set up a surveillance van for a piece of blue paint that could have been put there by anyone?

All they can do is send out a car on patrol but wether they will or not is another thing.

Why do they need to say there is nothing they can do? They can be vigilant can't they? Keep a record of conversation and talk with other stations.

Its an urban myth about houses being marked in this way. Why don't they just note the address?

petergfiffin

Deleted User wrote: »

Its an urban myth about houses being marked in this way. Why don't they just note the address?

Because they would have more explaining to do if the Guards pulled them and found a notebook full of addresses, particularly if any of those houses had been recently burgled. Not that I know either way if this is an urban legend or not.

Cuddlesworth

petergfiffin wrote: »

Because they would have more explaining to do if the Guards pulled them and found a notebook full of addresses, particularly if any of those houses had been recently burgled. Not that I know either way if this is an urban legend or not.

Compared to carrying around a blue spray can of paint with obvious evidence of vandalism?

Irish Stones

Deleted User wrote: »

Its an urban myth about houses being marked in this way. Why don't they just note the address?

Probably because those who leave the marks are not the same people that steal the pets.
Someone explores and others act.

Par72

This is an urban myth. There were similar unfounded stories in other countries stating that thieves were using stickers to mark homes that had dogs.
http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/dogstickers.asp

Sobko

It maybe an urban myth yet we still have dogs being robbed from homes and back gardens.

kylith

Sobko wrote: »

It maybe an urban myth yet we still have dogs being robbed from homes and back gardens.

But getting worked up about graffiti won't help. I've had a lazy-8 drawn on my gatepost months ago, and part of my fence painted blue a couple of years ago, and have had no break in attempts. Zero.

Kids steal spraypaint from roadworks and building sites and tag everywhere. That's what the marks are.

Keep your dogs as safe as possible, but don't get too worked up about kids graffiti-ing your area.

Sobko

kylith wrote: »

But getting worked up about graffiti won't help. I've had a lazy-8 drawn on my gatepost months ago, and part of my fence painted blue a couple of years ago, and have had no break in attempts. Zero.

Kids steal spraypaint from roadworks and building sites and tag everywhere. That's what the marks are.

Keep your dogs as safe as possible, but don't get too worked up about kids graffiti-ing your area.

I know this is not an Animals and Pets issue but why not get worked up about vandalism?

kylith

Sobko wrote: »

I know this is not an Animals and Pets issue but why not get worked up about vandalism?

Well, on the scale of vandalism graffiti is quite low, but if you want to get worked up about it get worked up about it as vandalism not theft markers.

Aye Bosun

Sobko wrote: »

I know this is not an Animals and Pets issue but why not get worked up about vandalism?

I really couldn't care about vandalism, as it was only a 3inch long marking so hardly a big deal, but if that 3inch long marking is an indication that my dog will be robbed...I will let loose all my crazy on their ass!

I know some are saying these types of marking are urban myth but when I spoke to guards they agreed it was a known sign. Myth and Legends while fictional usually have some basis in fact, they have just being going around so long the Chinese whisper effect comes into play.

galljga1

The police in the UK released a number of known symbols last year including a ''too risky" symbol. Simply put this on your fence/wall/kerb or whatever. Job done.

Dublingirl1972

hopefully nothing untoward but dogs going missing all over the place. certainly in cork lots being stolen, someone who volunteers for a shelter was telling me and i believe her as the internet is full of people looking for their dogs.

i always lock mine into the house when out, even for a short time as my back garden quite accessible on one side. id lose my life if they were taken.

Karen91

Our neighbours had a patch of their front pier sprayed blue, about a week later they caught two men trying to cut the lock on the dog run which contained their two japanese spitz. They managed to scare them away. The guards did'nt want to know about it. It is very possible houses with dogs are being marked, we live outside of the town and vandalism is not common around here so we are all pretty sure the two incidents are connected.

Cuddlesworth

Aye Bosun wrote: »

I really couldn't care about vandalism, as it was only a 3inch long marking so hardly a big deal, but if that 3inch long marking is an indication that my dog will be robbed...I will let loose all my crazy on their ass!

I know some are saying these types of marking are urban myth but when I spoke to guards they agreed it was a known sign. Myth and Legends while fictional usually have some basis in fact, they have just being going around so long the Chinese whisper effect comes into play.

I like the way people believe the local plod is some wholesome all encompassing source of knowledge.

They drive around estates during the day, checking for things to rob. They walk around estates, "popping" into the houses to ask if they need their driveway, gutters or garden done. They note the houses with cars in the evening and none during the day. Pop around once or twice during the day to confirm they are not there and have a look around. Pedgree dog through the letter box, fancy laptop on the sitting room couch. Come back and rob the place.

quietsailor

galljga1 wrote: »

The police in the UK released a number of known symbols last year including a ''too risky" symbol. Simply put this on your fence/wall/kerb or whatever. Job done.

It comes from something called the hobo code. Some of the English newspapers had an article on it a year or so ago - The Daily Telegraph

Sobko

Great Dane robbed from house in Arklow. A white transit van was the suspect vehicle. Yellow Reg. Images are up on Facebook.

Qualitymark

The abuse of animals through dog fighting and puppy farms is a growing crime bringing profit to some very nasty people. Like bike theft, it's one of those under-the-radar crimes ignored by the gardaí.

Aye Boson, you were right to paint over the blue paint immediately. It's probably a good idea to warn your neighbours too - warn the most gossipy people in your own street, and also warn those in the streets parallel on either side. And if your area has a Facebook page, post up about this. Might be good to post it on the region page here if you haven't already.

m5ex9oqjawdg2i

Juran wrote: »

'nothing the gardaí can do' is always the response when animals are invovled ... but tell them that a car is parked in your neighbourhood without tax and they will sent out the squad with lights flashing ....

I think that's the repsponse when any, perceived to be, minor crimes are reported.

bjork

It could be the opposite "Has dog - do not rob house"

Have any marks been reported in places where either dogs or houses have actually been robbed?

^^That case in Arklow, any paint marks reported?