By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-01-01 23:31:34 | Updated at 2025-01-04 15:02:36
2 days ago
An Arizona animal shelter has asked for the community's help to find the 'cruel' culprit that dumped her helpless Labrador in the facility's parking lot and drove off.
On Monday morning, a woman wearing a bright blue sweatshirt was seen dragging her dog on a leash through the Pinal County Animal Care and Control parking lot.
The unidentified woman from Florence, Arizona dumped her dog after she was informed the Casa Grande shelter was not open yet and she needed an appointment to give him up, according to the animal care center.
When the woman started to drive away in her black sedan, the startled animal chased after the vehicle - putting his life in danger.
The shelter said that he bolted across a busy road and was nearly hit by a car.
When agency workers discovered the footage of the scared pet, they started looking for him in the area to try and get him to safety.
At first, they had no luck because the dog was 'extremely terrified,' the animal care center explained.
But the next day, they were ale to safely capture the puppy and bring him inside. He will be available for adoption in a few days after he has had time to 'decompress.'
A woman wearing a bright blue sweatshirt was seen dragging her dog on a leash through the Pinal County Animal Care and Control parking lot
The dog was safely rescued the next day my the agency's employees and will be up for adoption in a few days
'Right now he is very shut down and terrified,' the agency explained, adding that it is illegal to abandon animals in Arizona.
The Pinal County Animal Care and Control Center said they want to 'see people be held accountable for their cruelness towards animals.'
Kim Powell of Maricopa County Animal Care and Control is not involved in the situation, but shared her perspective on leaving pets stranded.
She told AZFamily: 'It’s emotionally hard on the dog. You can sometimes see when dogs shut down in the shelter, they get a little depressed, they are confused.
'It does happen more often than you would think. We come into work and there is a dog tied up to a pole or a bench or something, and not realizing there is a process.'
The Labrador puppy was left just one day after a similar situation transpired in Colorado.
An unidentified woman walked up to L.O.L.A.'s Rescue in Aurora on Sunday afternoon and carelessly threw a black dog carrier on the ground before strolling away.
Door cam footage shows the bag - holding the vulnerable dog - toppling over as it hits the ground.
The woman drove off in a black sedan and the scared puppy chased after the vehicle, according to the shelter
The woman dumped her dog after she was told the shelter was not open yet and that she needed an appointment to surrender her pet
A L.O.L.A.'s manager discovered the stranded animal 30 minutes later and brought him inside to safety. When she reviewed the surveillance video, she was utterly horrified.
She described her initial reaction to the jaw-dropping sight.
'I was mad at first because I felt bad that someone could just toss a dog like that,' manager Shani Lee told KDVR.
Lee said when she first saw the dog - which she believes is a terrier, beagle or dachshund mix - he was 'very fearful.'
The dog, who Lee named Gulliver, has been on the road to recovery from his traumatizing endeavor.
