The owner of a bus which is used to ferry dogs around for walks and days out has been left “heartbroken” after vandals tried to hotwire the vehicle in an apparent attempt to steal it.
Billy’s Bus, which is believed to be the first of its kind in the UK, is a converted school bus which takes pets on day-long adventures across West Yorkshire.
Owner Laura Mohan said the yellow vehicle was targeted on Tuesday, with “every single wire cut”, leaving her facing a substantial repair bill.
She said: “Why would you want to do something like this? This bus creates real magic everywhere it goes, so it comes as a shock when something like this happens.”
Mohan said the vehicle was parked at Tong Park Industrial Estate on Otley Road in Baildon when it was damaged.
She explained that the bus had to be taken off the road on Wednesday, forcing her to cancel bookings and let down dogs and owners who relied on the service.
“We’ve only ever had to cancel the service twice in 11 months – and that was because of extreme weather,” she said.
“We have customers who rely on us to pick up their dogs – many have reasons why they can’t walk their dogs themselves – so when we have to let everyone down at such short notice for something as senseless as this, it left us heartbroken.”
