A FAMILY are offering a £5,000 reward for information leading to the safe return of their beloved dogs they claim were snatched during a New Year’s Day shoot.

Gamekeeper Edward Bell, 41, and his wife Georgie, 45, say their border terriers Ruby, five, and Beetle, two, vanished on the shoot on the Lothian Estate in Jedburgh.

They allege the dogs could have been taken by members of a criminal gang from the Consett or Bishop Auckland areas who have been "known to target communities on the Scottish Borders".

Mrs Bell, whose three children have been left distraught, said: “We know in our heart of our hearts that if they had still been in the borders they would have come back.”

  • Anyone with information should contact 07885 712165 or 07989 513946.