Today, after school, my 13 year old daughter was outside the house with a friend and her border collie.  They said a strange looking man approached them asking about the dog ie. age, sex, breed and if she had ever had pups!  He then walked away!  For some reason it sent a shiver down my spine, do you think I am being over protective..............I've heard so much about dogs being stolen to order that I heard alarm bells!  There was no reason for this man to approach the girls as we live in a cul-de-sac and it leads nowhere!  I just hope he didn't think the dog lived in my house...................I do have a cocker spaniel, do you think I'm being paranoid???

No as dogs are taken every day so just keep an eye on things and dont let children take dogs out as it is so easy for the men to just grab and throw them into van/car.

not just the dogs either :(

I would be worried and often let my daughter take our lhasa for a walk, she is old (that's the dog not my daughter) and only walks her down our street and back approx. 5 mins walking time.  I let her take Dicsky the other day on the same route but the more I read about dog's getting taken etc., it scares me into not being so lazy and take him myself!  He gets two good walks a day, but everytime someone puts on their coat or outdoor shoes he's convinced he can go to and sits crying at the door until someone takes him and it only has to be for 5mins and he comes back a happy chappy but he just loves being out.  Spoilt yes I know, we have started putting him in his crate when people are going out as he knows then he's not going and never plays up.

Your not paranoid or over-protective. I also worry when my 13 yr old daughter tells me someone was asking about our Staff. Although she's Micro-chipped we are all too aware that if she is snatched there are still no guarantees we'll get her back.

Hi,

You are not paranoid, just a normal caring mother and dog owner :-) I have a Briard and a 7 year old daughter, she is not strong enough to walk him yet, but I would say - PROTECT, PROTECT, PROTECT!!
You can trust NO-ONE in my opinion, but maybe I am just a miserable git who has lost the ability to see the good in people The more people I meet the more I love my dog :-)