Up to $5,000 Reward Offered for Safe Return of French Bulldog Stolen from Sober Living Complex

For Immediate Release:
November 20, 2024

Contact:
Sara Groves 202-483-7382

PETA is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the safe return of a French bulldog as well as the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for stealing the dog from a sober living apartment complex on Lynnwood Street near Sahara Avenue on Friday. Locating the dog is crucial, as he may have special veterinary needs: French bulldogs are a breathing-impaired breed (BIB) who suffer from an array of physical disabilities due to their deliberately flattened, pushed-in snouts, causing distorted airways that leave them struggling to breathe.

According to reports, security cameras at the complex captured an unknown woman with dark hair wearing a pink sweater slipping into the building’s locked front entrance as a tenant exited at around 2 p.m. on Friday. The suspect then picked up the dog—a white 1 ½-year-old male named Rza, whose guardian manages the complex and allows him to roam freely within its halls—and absconded with him. The suspect appeared to be accompanied by a man wearing a black beanie and a white and gray hoodie.

Police are investigating but don’t yet have any leads, so PETA is asking for the public’s help to find Rza and the person(s) who stole him.

“This dog is surely terrified and may even be in grave danger in the hands of someone unprepared to deal with potential health issues caused by his breeding,” says PETA Director Moira Colley. “PETA urges anyone with information to come forward immediately and help Rza reunite with his family.”

PETA notes that French bulldogs are frequent targets of dognappers due to the high price tag the pet trade sets on them—because after generations of selective breeding, they typically can’t reproduce naturally and have to be artificially inseminated. As long as people pay top dollar for puppies from pet stores and breeders, there will be a market for stolen “purebred” dogs—and the best way to reduce the demand for these dogs is to adopt from a shelter and never buy from a breeder, pet store, or anyone else.

Anyone with information related to the case should contact the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department at 702-828-3111 or [email protected].

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.