Devastated autistic boy, 7, has his beloved support dog Blue STOLEN - with a woman seen taking the spaniel from family home
A young boy with autism has been left heartbroken by the theft of his beloved assistance dog Blue from his south-east Queensland home.
Xavier Buckley was left devastated when his six-month old Brittany spaniel was taken from the family's Bellmere property just north of Brisbane, on Friday.
The seven-year-old had been given Blue in April with his mother Sarah Rodgers training the spaniel as a support dog to help her son, who has autism.
'Blue' a six month old Brittany spaniel went missing from the family's Bellmere property, north of Brisbane, on August 20
Despite being only in the early stages of training, her son's life had improved noticeably, with Xavier appearing more settled, especially at school.
After notifying police, his crestfallen mother took to her Facebook to appeal for any public information on Blue's whereabouts.
'Our sons assistance dog in training has been stolen from our residence, 6 month old Brittany Spaniel, missing between 08:30-11:00 Friday 20/08/2021. This is when she was last seen by us at 08:30,' Ms Rodgers wrote.
The spaniel was being trained as an Autism support dog for seven year old Xavier Buckley
'We walked the creek lines and canvassed all neighbours today. Unfortunately she was seen with a lady on a lead.'
'If she is returned there will be no questions asked. Please help me reunite a little boy with his world!'
Ms Rodgers, who works and travels with horses, said Blue was an important support for her son, offering him security as he struggles to cope with noise and lots of activity that comes with her job.
'Blue just gives him that moment to centre. When he gets overwhelmed ... Blue would come up and lick him in the back of the head and go, "hey, it's OK,"' Ms Rodgers told 7News.
'If he was walking through a crowd and was starting to get overwhelmed, Blue would be walking in front of him and go, "hey, it's OK".'
Ms Rodgers struggled to deliver the devastating news to her son, saying it's been 'really hard'.
Blue went missing on Friday during a school run with mother Sarah Rogers claiming a woman was last seen leaving the area with the spaniel that morning
The spaniel was taken from the family's Bellmere property in the Moreton Bay region during a school run on Friday morning.
Desperately searching along creek lines and neighbouring residences the family failed to locate the dog.
However Ms Rodgers told the news outlet a witness last reported seeing a woman carrying the spaniel down the road that same morning.
Police are currently investigating the incident while Xavier anxiously awaits to be reunited with his beloved Blue.
Police are now investigating Blue's disappearance as the family appealed on Facebook pleading for any information from the public