Foxhound puppies stolen in nighttime raid

Thieves have stolen two foxhound puppies that were being walked by a hunting family in Kent.

The two male puppies, “Stroller” and “Student”, are 10-12 weeks old. They were being walked by the Palmers, who are Ashford Valley Tickham subscribers.

The Palmers’ stables were broken into at their farm in Egerton around 10.30pm on Sunday night (7 July). Thieves stole the puppies, their feed, rugs for the Palmers’ horses and grooming kit.

Megan Palmer, who is 29, said her young sons Harry, aged six and Olly, two, were “heartbroken”.

Mrs Palmer said: “They’re not pets. They are not trained for hunting, they are just puppies. They’re meant to be with their pack.”

Mrs Palmer and her husband Adam were due to be walking the puppies until September, when they would have been handed back to the hunt kennels.

Stroller is described as lemon and white and looks like a traditional hound puppy, while Student (in the foreground of the picture) is mainly white with a few lemon patches, one lemon-coloured ear and unusual black markings around one eye.

Mr Palmer told H&H that he hoped the thieves had “the brains to give them back”.

He continued: “They are no use to them for lamping [hunting using flashlights], they won’t hunt on their own, they are a pack animal. They’re going to be very distinctive — people will spot them straight away.

“I can only think that in the dark they took them thinking they were Labrador puppies,” he added.

The thieves also targeted a neighbouring farm that night, taking two ferrets, diesel and a petrol strimmer.

Anyone with information is urged to contact PC Jonathan Nock of Kent Police on 01233 896288 quoting crime reference ZY/19050/13.

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