Food blogger’s car stolen with his dog inside in South Austin

AUSTIN, Texas – A popular online food blogger is in a desperate search for his dog. 

His dog and his car were stolen early Friday morning in South Austin.

Dog stolen along with car in Austin

What they’re saying:

Mabel Davis Park, in south Austin, is where Taylor Hannon typically walks his dog noodles. 

On Friday, Hannon and his friend Marco Garcia were at the park, hoping his dog had returned to this familiar spot. Noodles, a black terrier mix, was stolen Friday morning.

“Yeah, it’s been pretty panic-inducing. I just have a lot of empathy for Noodles. He is pretty attached to me, and he likes a handful of people.  He’s not a mean dog, but he’s shy and keeps to himself, and he just really loves being around me. So not being around is probably freaking him out a little bit,” said Hannon.

A South Austin apartment complex, along I-35 near Woodward St, is where this theft case began. Hannon says he was packing his red Honda Civic around 4:40 a.m. on Friday, preparing for a weekend road trip. 

“My car was about 15 feet outside my front door, so I left the car going to get the AC going, threw my duffel bag in there, threw the dog in there, went to grab his food and his bed for the trip and coming back out with the food in my hands, I saw somebody getting into my vehicle and drive off,” said Hannon.

There is not a good description of the men who took the car and the dog. But two scooters were left behind by the car thief and another man. That’s how they arrived at the apartment complex, according to Garcia.

“I called Bird, and they said they could help, (but) they don’t know. We’re still waiting on them, but I think that if they have the person’s information, they should give us the information,” said Garcia.

Taylor Hannon is a popular online food blogger. News of the car theft and the loss of his dog went viral.

“I’m scared. He is an over-thinker of a dog and just seems to have like human eyes if anyone’s ever met Noodles. It looks like he’s thinking all the time and I just can’t imagine what he is going through right now,” said Hannon. 

A security camera from the La Quinta inn at Oltorf recorded video of Hannon’s red Honda passing by on the frontage road. It appears the car was initially heading through the intersection toward the northbound I-35 on ramp. But a second camera view showed how the car turned east on Oltorf. 

Hannon spent the day following that trail. The men could have let noodles out. If not, Hannon had this message for them.

“Feel free to have the car. I would like to have my dog back,” said Hannon.

Noodles is chipped, so if he shows up at a shelter or an animal clinic, Hannon could be contacted. 

Big picture view:

APD’s Auto Theft Unit is working on this case, which is the latest in an escalating problem. 

In April, city officials reported more than 1,300 cases of auto theft in Austin. An updated number was not available.