Gore police are no closer to solving the case of a stolen and brutally mauled dog.
Sergeant Clint Wright, of Gore, said police had received a ''minor amount'' of information in relation to the theft and mauling of Polly, a medium-sized Staffordshire-cross looked after by the Gore SPCA.
The Otago Daily Times reported earlier this week that Polly was stolen from the SPCA kennels on Saturday night or Sunday morning and found by staff on Monday morning mauled and fighting for her life.
Sgt Wright said it was ''very frustrating'' police had not been able to advance the investigation.
''There's no real hard lines of inquiry,'' he said.
''We thought we would have had vets and people contacting us saying dogs have come in with injuries but that hasn't happened.''
Although people had speculated Polly was taken for dog-fighting, there was no concrete evidence there was any dog-fighting happening in the Gore area.
''I'm hoping someone will have some morals or some real feeling and come forward, especially if they have information which can help us in this matter,'' he said.
RNZSPCA chief executive Ric Odom said the SPCA was still investigating the theft of Polly and the dog's injuries and also the security of animals held by the organisation.
The case was ''highly unusual'' - it was the first time he had heard of a dog being stolen from the SPCA and mauled.
The SPCA could not rule out the possibility Polly was taken for dog fighting and Mr Odom said he believed dog-fighting was occurring in New Zealand, but ''the extent of it I don't know''.
''There's enough stories going around that I'm certainly satisfied that it's going on. The difficulty is nailing it down - we just can't do it.''
He called on anyone with information about this case or other instances of animal cruelty to call their local SPCA.
Anyone with information can contact Gore police on (03) 203-9300. Information can also be provided anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800-555-111. People can contact the Gore SPCA on (03) 208-5111.
