DERRY TOWNSHIP -- Three German Shepherd puppies, only weeks old, were stolen from a home near Danville and the owner is offering a reward for their safe return.
The purebred German Shepherd puppies are two weeks old, according to caretaker Stacy Bowersox. They slept in their pen near Danville while their protective mom watched over them.
Bowersox cares for the dogs while their owner Paul St. Clair is away on business. She says one day last week she noticed something horribly wrong inside the pen.
"I had discovered when I came over, the pitchfork was moved from the back of the barn to her cage. I picked it up and when I went in I discovered there were some pups missing," Bowersox said.
Bowersox said she noticed three male puppies missing. State police believe they were stolen, and someone used a pitchfork to scare the mom.
"Those dogs didn't ask for this stuff. I mean that's the thing. If we're lucky, they're still alive," Helen Hulsizer said.
Investigators say unusual tire tracks were in the driveway and grass at the home.
A neighbor says she saw a suspicious truck pull into this driveway one night and the next morning the puppies were missing.
"It was at the top of the hill and it put brake lights on. Usually when someone does that they turn into his lower driveway. All I know is it was a white pickup," Hulsizer said.
Bowersox said the puppies were less than one week old and need to be with their mother to survive. The owner is giving a $1,000 reward for anyone with information.
"They have to be nursed from their mother. They require their mother's milk at such a young age. I mean their eyes weren't even open or anything," Bowersox said.
The three puppies are all black, purebred German Shepherds and there is a $1,000 reward offered for information leading to their safe return. If you have any information you are asked to contact state police.