A distraught donkey was spotted on camera crying over her newborn foal after it was stolen from an animal farm.
Baby Moon was cruelly snatched from a field at Miller’s Ark farm in Hampshire on Monday – and now a £10,000 reward is being offered for his safe return.
The national campaign has sparked outrage across the country, with animal lovers calling for the two-month-old baby to be reunited with his mother Astra.
The farm’s owner, Elizabeth Miller, said she realized Moon was missing when she went to collect all the mothers and foals from the fields at night.
Elizabeth is deeply concerned that the cute colt won’t be strong enough to survive without its mother, just like Astra, who can’t do well without her baby.
The ailing donkey Astra was spotted on camera crying for her newborn foal after it was stolen from an animal farm
Baby Moon, two months old, was cruelly snatched from a field at Miller’s Ark farm in Hampshire on Monday
The pair are said to be inseparable – and now there’s a £10,000 reward up for grabs for the colt’s safe return
She said ITV: “Astra is just completely devastated, just really stressed out, braying up and down the fence.
“She doesn’t know what to do with herself, because all her natural instinct is to find the colt.”
Elizabeth added that the poor donkey was so distraught that she had barely eaten since the incident, but every effort was made to reunite the couple.
She also suggested that with the presence of unfamiliar faces on the farm, the colt could have been swept away while staff attended to visiting tourists.
She said, “We feel like she was lifted over the fence and taken away. They’re very small and very friendly, so we think that’s what happened.’
Hampshire Police and Isle of Wight News are on the case to find baby Moon and finally reunite her with her mother.
In a message on Facebookthe agency said: ‘A rescue team is on standby and available if the location is disclosed to us 24/7 and we will ensure that your personal details remain completely anonymous.’
The ranch’s owner, Elizabeth Miller, fears that Moon may have been kidnapped while staff were tending to tourists
Elizabeth is deeply concerned that the adorable colt won’t be strong enough to survive without its mother
“This reward is not through the police or other organizations, so information must be passed directly to us in our message section to pay a reward once verified.”
“If you prefer to contact the police, call 101 with reference 44230191581.”
In recent years, animal theft has reached a seven-year high, with the equivalent of eight dogs stolen each day.
In 2021 alone, 2,760 dogs were snatched from their owners, and heartbreaking thefts are up 16 percent since 2015, according to new data.
The most likely targeted breeds are French Bulldogs, followed by Jack Russell Terriers and other small dogs such as Chihuahuas and Pugs, numbers disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act and compiled by Direct Line Pet Insurance Show.
Coronavirus restrictions have led to an explosion in the puppy market in recent years, with 3.8 million people getting a dog during the pandemic.
The demand has led to a rise in the cost of dogs, with pedigreed French Bulldogs costing more than £3000, making them a lucrative target for criminals.
London was the worst affected area with 422 incidents reported to Met police, followed by West Yorkshire and Kent.