January 22, 2008

ST. CHARLES, Mo. - According to news station KMOV in Missouri, two men are posing as animal control officers so they can steal people's animals.

According to the report, two men dressed in plain clothes went to the home of Kathleen Spink. The men claimed to be animal control officers, and that they were confiscating her dog Gizmo because it wasn't on a leash.

Suspicious of the men, Spink called local animal control who verified that the men were not who they claimed to be. They left soon after – Gizmo safely with his mother.

They didn't have any identification, Spink says, but they were driving a white van with an animal logo. It looked similar to St. Charles County Humane Services vehicles.

It's unknown what the men intended to do with Gizmo, and that is the most frightening part of this story. Animal control reps say asking for identification in these cases is a must – and not to be afraid to call animal services to verify someone's identity.

By the way, Spink's yard is fenced in, and Gizmo was playing with another family dog in the yard when the incident occurred. There are no other reports of similar activity in the St. Charles area.

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Correction: Initially reported as St. Charles, Mississippi.