Singer Lady Gaga's French bulldogs were stolen on Wednesday night after an unidentified gunman shot her dog walker in Los Angeles.

The gunman used a semi-automatic handgun and left in a sedan towards Hollywood Boulevard, police said. The dog walker was reportedly shot in a scuffle when he tried to fend off the kidnappers.

The dog walker is believed to be in a critical condition. Lady Gaga has offered a reward of $500,000 (€411,000) for the two kidnapped dogs, Koji and Gustav.

Gaga's press representative said that there would be "no questions asked" to the person returning the dogs.

A third bulldog, Miss Asia, escaped from the crime scene and was later found by the police.

Lady Gaga was away from her dogs, in Rome, working on a new film. The singer is known to be extremely protective of her dogs and even has an Instagram account dedicated to them.

French bulldogs difficult to breed

Los Angeles authorities have yet to determine the motive behind the attack. It is not clear whether the gunman targeted the dogs because of their celebrity status or their breed.

There have been several cases around the US involving assaults on owners of French bulldogs or kidnappings.

French bulldogs are expensive as they are difficult to breed. The dogs have to be bred through artificial insemination and delivered through Caesarean section.

The case has been taken over by robbery-homicide detectives from the LA police department.

am/rs (AP, Reuters)