Did someone actually try to steal my dog??

The cut behind Whiteys leg

I've been out of town for some days. Today when I came home I started to unpack my car. Hayley was asleep so I brought her in to the house. Whitey was sitting on the driveway. I went back and forth to the car with all our stuff (read: dirty laundry..)

Through the screen doors in the living room I watch two Mexican men step out from a white Van they parked on the opposite side of the road. They walk over to our side, and on to our drive way. Whitey approach them with a wagging tale. He just LOVES every one. I walk towards the door to see what's up. I didn't recognize the men. For a few seconds, while walking from the living room to the door in the mud room, I don't see what's happening. 

When I open the door, the men disappears and Whitey runs to me screaming. He has a wound behind his right, front leg. What happened?

At first I thought they kicked him for some reason, but after thinking about it for a little while it doesn't seem realistic. It looks like a cut. Like if someone put something (wire?) around him. Did someone actually try to steal my dog?

Everything happened so fast. I didn't get a good signature of the men and I didn't see the license plate of the car. All I saw was that they looked like Mexicans and drove a white Van.

I'm a little upset. It's kind of scary. Whitey loves to sit on the driveway or on the porch, just looking at stuff but after this I'm afraid to let him out of sight. 

I'm very thankful that nothing worse happened.