Illegal dog trade feared

3:25pm Sunday 14th January 2007

THE return of pop star Lily Allen's stolen English bull terrier has sparked fears about an illegal dog trade in Waltham Forest.

The pet pooch, called Maggie May, was handed over during a late night rendezvous in Leytonstone on January 3 after a £500 reward was given to a man who claimed he had bought the dog as a Christmas present.

However, the singer said the animal appeared to have been treated poorly and the man offered to sell puppies to her friends, suggesting he was involved in unlicensed breeding.

Maggie May was stolen from a van parked in Capel Road, Forest Gate, in December while being looked after by a friend of Ms Allen, 21, who was on holiday in Jamaica at the time.

Ms Allen wrote in her blog on the MySpace website: "Now I feel guilty for having given these people money and contributing to their cruel business, but I love that dog and felt I had no choice.

"The fact that she was very thin makes me think she was mistreated (ie not fed) and fact she was infested with fleas implies she was kept with other (maybe stolen) animals."

Jayne Hayes, founder of website Dog Lost, where owners can post details of their missing pets, said she believed organised gangs were stealing canines across east London for use in dog fights.

"We think they are being sold in pubs by people looking for quick money for drugs," she told the BBC.

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