NationalWorld asked every police force in the UK for information held on the breed of dogs reported stolen.NationalWorld asked every police force in the UK for information held on the breed of dogs reported stolen.
NationalWorld asked every police force in the UK for information held on the breed of dogs reported stolen.

These 15 dog breeds were the most commonly stolen in 2020 - according to police data

We gathered information on more than 2,000 dogs reported stolen to the police to find out which breeds are most frequently targeted.

An investigation by NationalWorld revealed this week that reports of dog thefts to UK police forces increased by 13% in 2020.

The 29 police forces that responded to our Freedom of Information request also provided breed details, which levied information for more than 2,300 stolen dogs.

We have crunched the numbers to find which types of dogs are reported stolen the most frequently – although officers do not always record this information in a decipherable way, if at all.

Crossbreeds were counted under each parent breed where the information was given – for instance a chihuahua-Jack Russell cross is counted under both chihuahua and Jack Russell – to get a fuller picture of the type of dogs targeted by thieves.

Here we reveal the top 15 most frequently stolen breeds.