³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Dog thefts in south Wales have quadrupled in two years, new figures show.

Reports of pinched pooches in the South Wales Police force area rose from 16 in 2012 to 68 in 2014.

Gwent Police and Dyfed-Powys Police also reported an increase while North Wales Police saw cases halve in the same time.

Animal welfare charity Blue Cross wants to see tougher sentences for pet thieves.

Cases reported to Gwent Police rose from 10 in 2012 to 13 in 2014; by the end of November, there were 13 reports for 2015.

South Wales Police have had 57 thefts reported so far this year.

Dyfed-Powys Police's dog thefts rose from nine to 11 and there have been 17 in 2015.

North Wales Police saw thefts drop from 31 to 16, with 15 reported so far in 2015.

Pam Burne-Jones from Blue Cross said across the UK there had been a 40% increase in pet thefts.

She added: "I love to go up to people and talk to them about their dogs, but sadly you do have to be aware that it could be someone who's trying to target your pet."

Julie Evans from Briton Ferry, Neath Port Talbot, lost her beagle-cross Hansum while walking him last year.

She said: "Everyone searched for him, but when I found he'd last been seen in the estate I knew someone had taken him - he'd been stolen.

"My biggest fear is that Hansum is in a cage somewhere being used for breeding."