A family have been left heartbroken after their beloved puppy disappeared from Bean.

Zowiey Newman, aged 27, of Barth Road in Plumstead, left her seven-month-old American pitbull, Hunter, with a friend near Beacon Woods in Bean on July 31 while she moved house - her friend then called to tell her she believed Hunter had been stolen.

Miss Newman and her five-year-old daughter, Millie have been left devastated by the loss of their dog, who they rescued at just four weeks old.

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She said: "I have been having housing problems and I am moving back in with my mum while we find somewhere else to live.

"I left Hunter with a friend and now he's gone - I am heartbroken.

"I can't tell my little girl, he's her best friend. She thinks he has just gone out and got a bit lost will be coming back."

Miss Newman old News Shopper that despite the dangerous stereotype surrounding pit bulls, Hunter is a lovely family pet.

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She added: "When we got him the police said that he was classed as a dangerous dog and to get him micro-chipped and neutered and to get a muzzle but he wouldn't even chase a fly.

"He thinks he's a baby not a dog and now I don't know whose got him or where he is.

"I terrified someone is going to use him for fighting - he's not dangerous or aggressive - he is just a much-loved family pet."

A spokesman for Kent Police said: "Kent Police is looking into a report of theft from an address in Bean. Enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances around the incident."