A family's beloved miniature poodle has been missing for 15 days after she was plucked from the front garden of their Auckland home by a stranger.
Twelve-year-old Cookie was taken from the front yard of David Xu's grandmother's Onehunga house on April 7, just before 2pm.
Xu said his grandmother was gardening at the time and saw a person pat Cookie a few times before picking her up.
"My grandma doesn't speak English so she decided to come in and get me," the 19-year-old said.
"I ran outside but when I hit the street I looked both ways and there was no one on the street, and the street is pretty long as well."
Just over two weeks have passed since the "friendly and smart" pet was taken and Xu said the family just wants her back.
"Sometimes it's hard, but I just distract myself a lot," he said.
Xu's mother adopted Cookie six years ago from a family friend who was moving overseas and could no longer care for her.
"I remember the night my mum brought her home," he said.
In a Facebook post, Auckland City District Police published images of a person holding what appeared to be Cookie on a residential street.
• Anyone who has seen the person or has information about Cookie's whereabouts is asked to contact the police on 105.