"I had her trained well, she was trained to stay. If I go somewhere I'd tell her to stay and she wouldn't move from there," he said.
"When I went to that place [Ace Second Hand Shop], she was there when I went in and when I came out she was gone. She wouldn't have done that unless someone had picked her up," Hodgetts added.
The Napier man did have photos of his beloved companion on his cellphone but misplaced it a few weeks prior to the incident.
Doug Hodgetts in altered photo to indicate what his missing dog Tabitha looks like. Photo / Louise Gould
Hodgetts' son Thomas Sutton sent the only picture he has of Tabatha to help people recognise the missing dog.
Sutton said he is very annoyed that someone has done this.
"My dad loves his dog and he had it well trained. I hope she is found," he said.
One recognisable feature of Tabatha is her floppy ear.
"Many people around Napier know her because I used to walk her around every day," Hodgetts said.
Doug has urged whoever has his best friend to take care of her.
"Whoever's got the dog and if they don't return it, just please make sure she's looked after," he added.
