Beloved border collie 'stolen' from Melbourne show

A much-loved border collie is missing after what his owner believes was a brazen theft from an agricultural show in Lilydale, north-east Melbourne.

Shearer Michael Apostoladis said he locked his dog, Jessie, in a pen at the Lilydale Show on Saturday and headed off to work as a steward for a sheep event.

When Mr Apostoladis returned, Jessie was gone.

"He's never got out so obviously he's been taken, because there's no way he'd run away," Mr Apostoladis told 3AW this morning.

"If he'd got out (on his own), he would have come straight to me or he would have just run around."

Investigations into the theft are ongoing.  

Police said they have a suspect and are tracking down CCTV from the time of the incident.