A PET dog thought to have been stolen to order has been reunited with his owners after being traced to London.

Worried owner Sharon Goodwin contacted a specialist website after her pedigree English bull terrier Jimmy, worth £1,000, was dog-napped.

Within minutes of his disappearance the 13-month-old dog's details had been circulated to a network of members who started searching for him.

The volunteers also put up posters in shops and vets 'surgeries and eventually traced little Jimmy to an address in Wimbledon, London.

The dog was so desperate to be free that when he spotted police he smashed through a window to greet them and has now been reunited with Simon and Sharon Goodwin and their three children, Garret, 10, Troy, 5, and Megan, 4, of Fareham.

Three weeks after his disappearance the Goodwins collected Jimmy from Wimbledon police station.

Mrs Goodwin said: "We were so emotional when we were reunited with Jimmy, we had begun to think that we may never see him again. Jimmy was ecstatic he went mad when he heard Simon whistle at him.

"We took him back from the police kennels and he was desperate to get into the house and see the children.

"After he had played with them he walked into the garden and then curled up in his bed in the house as if he had never been away.

"He looked around as if to say: 'What's all the fuss about?' He looked perfectly content."

Stolen

The loveable pet was stolen after gas pipe layer Mr Goodwin, 30, took Jimmy with him while he was working in Wimbledon.

He tied the dog to the back of his van but when he wasn't looking someone took him. Mrs Goodwin, 36, a support clerk, went onto the Internet and contacted www.doglost.co.uk from the family home. Within minutes of e-mailing the website to say her dog had been stolen an alert had gone out to dog owners in the Wimbledon area to search for Jimmy.

Three weeks later police received an anonymous tip off that let them to the house in Wimbledon where they spotted Jimmy through a downstairs window.

Mrs Goodwin, said: "It gave me such strength to know there were people out there looking for him.

"I had never heard of dog- napping before but after going on the website I realised that it actually happens quite often."

"I'm sure he was stolen to order and whoever had him was going to sell him."

PC Paul Fagence, of Wimbledon police, said: "We are certain the dog was stolen and we have a possible suspect, but we have yet to make an arrest."