CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla -- Charlotte County Animal Control is looking for the person who may have tied a dog up and dragged it, and left it in the middle of the road. Animal control says someone found the dog Wednesday in Port charlotte on Chippewa Street and Gisinger Boulevard, and now they’re wondering why someone would do this.
Animal Control Director, Brian Jones told Fox 4 they will treat this act like an animal cruelty case. Animal Control says once an officer got word of the animal lying in the road, they didn’t know if it was a dog or coyote and took it to be examined. Examiners say it was a 9-month-old female Shepard mix that had been dead for about three days.
Animal Control explains the dog had a makeshift harness attached to it, and a clip attached to the harness with a rope, and they believe the dog was dragged by a moving vehicle. Jones says he thinks the dog didn’t die there, but someone decided to drag it and possibly relocate it.
"We’re just really trying to find out what was going here and how the animal ended up in this place under those conditions, it’s really bizarre and sad at the same time," Jones said.
Karen Slumba, the Executive Director for the Animal Welfare League in Charlotte County, she says these animal cruelty cases aren’t rare in the area. Slumba says dogs and cats come that have been severely mistreated at least once a month.
"We’re so attached to our animals, then there’s that other side of humanity that just doesn’t get that animals are living beings," Slumba said.
Slumba explains it’s never this gruesome, but it can be prevented. "We do see cruelty on a regular basis, and it’s something that is just appalling. It’s unbelievable to me do not remain silent if you see anybody mistreating an animal."
Fox 4 did talk to some neighbors who say they have reported several similar cases like this of people dragging things down the road to the police. Animal Control says the dog isn’t microchipped and officials have not located anyone who knows who did this. They encourage anyone with any information, to call immediately.