Criminal gangs are swapping drugs and weapons for doe-eyed pups.
This time last year dogs made the headlines of the Financial Times, a global financial newspaper better known for dry, sophisticated analyses of business and share charts than heart-melting pictures of cute animals. It noted that prices for pups were soaring in the UK along with demand for new pets among people forced to stay at home during the pandemic.
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Since then, the pet market across Europe has exploded. The Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) finds, after an investigation, that the illegal trade in dogs has become so lucrative that criminal gangs have been swapping drugs and weapons for doe-eyed pups. At least 8m new dogs are now required to supply Europe annually, while only 1m come from official breeding facilities.
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This illicit economy is estimated to be worth as much as €4bn euros (about R70bn). The mark-up is staggering, with French bulldogs reportedly costing as little as €20 euros to breed in Hungary – and selling to British buyers for between €5,000 and €8,000 (R136,000), the OCCRP said this week. Those eye-watering prices, in turn, are believed to be behind a rise in pet theft in the UK, with the British police resorting to asking the media to publish dog mugshots to help trace owners of the many pets being recovered in raids.
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