A two-year-old dog who was strangled and dumped in a canal after being snatched from her home on Christmas Eve has become the first canine to feature on the BBC's Crimewatch programme.
Troya was a rare-breed Spanish presa canario who was stolen from her outdoor kennel in December last year.
Her body was discovered more than three weeks later floating in a canal in Romiley, Stockport.
She had been hanged with a length of washing line and was found with a blue Aldi carrier bag over her head and secured around her neck with curtain wire.
Both Greater Manchester Police and the RSPCA are investigating her death and more than £2,000 has been offered to help find her killer.
A social media campaign lobbying Crimewatch’s spin-off show Crimewatch Roadshow led to the programme launching the appeal on Friday which included a reconstruction of the theft.
The canine’s owner, Anthony Taylor, 34, described Troya as his “best friend”.
He told Crimewatch: “Everybody loved Troya, everybody. She was part of the family.”
GMP officer Joseph Torkington also appeared on the programme, and called the killing “horrific”.
Troya was taken in the early hours of December 24 and her body was found floating in the canal on January 18.
A Facebook page dedicated to investigating her death has garnered more than 13,000 supporters.
Well-wishers raised money for a private autopsy that revealed the dog had been hanged or strangled.
Animal campaigner Chops Owen said it was the first time Crimewatch had featured a dog that had been deliberately killed.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crimewatch on 0800 0468 999, text 63399 with “CW” and their message, tweet @BBCCrimewatch, or call the RSPCA on 0300 123 8018.