Even before Hurricane Milton could make landfall in Florida on Wednesday, October 09, an incident is already breaking the hearts of many after Florida Highway Patrol’s post on X (previously Twitter).
“Do NOT do this to your pets please…”FHP Tampa wrote in their post on Wednesday morning, along with a video of an abandoned dog tied to a pole on I-75 in a pool of floodwater.
FHP Tampa reveals, “FHP Troopers rescued a dog left tied to a pole on I-75 near Bruce B Downs Blvd this morning.”
The video shows an unidentified Florida Highway Trooper walking towards a grassy area where the dog is seen tied to a pole.
“It’s okay, it’s okay,” the Trooper kept telling the dog. However, the dog, visibly scared and confused, kept on growling and barking at the Trooper.
FHP Troopers rescued a dog left tied to a pole on I-75 near Bruce B Downs Blvd this morning. Do NOT do this to your pets please… pic.twitter.com/8cZJOfkJL2
The Trooper kept on consoling the dog saying, “I don’t blame you. It’s okay, buddy. Its okay.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis thanked FHP Tampa for rescuing the dog and responded to the incident saying, “It is cruel for anyone to leave a dog tied to a post in the middle of an oncoming storm. FL will hold anyone who mistreats pets accountable.”
Thankfully, after a few hours of the video being posted, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) provided an update on the dog saying, “The dog rescued by @FHPTampa is safe and receiving care.”
“Troopers brought him to a vet, where he was examined for injuries and received a clean bill of health,” FLHSMV added.
Update: The dog rescued by @FHPTampa is safe and receiving care. Troopers brought him to a vet, where he was examined for injuries and received a clean bill of health. pic.twitter.com/cut1jv7cBe
People online were outraged and heartbroken for the poor dog. A lot of the users are hoping that the owners will be found, and rightfully arrested.
One user wrote, “I hope that dog is chipped, and they find the owner and charge them with Animal abuse. That is horrible, we are literally getting hit by a hurricane in hours.”
“I hope that owner never owns another pet. What a sh**ty human being to tie up an animal during a hurricane. At least let it run loose to find safety,” another wrote.
Another user also wrote, “People who harm children and pets are the lowest in society and need to be dealt with accordingly.”
FHP Tampa tells Fox News that while they are not aware of other animals abandoned in the storm, they are conducting patrols and looking for any vulnerable people and animals that may have been left.
The Genesee County Jail’s 13-month-old therapy dog, Josie, was greeting inmates throughout the jail when she gets viciously attacked by an inmate on Tuesday, September 24.
In a news conference recorded via Facebook Live, Sheriff Chris Swanson revealed what went down during the violent incident inside Genesee County Jail.
During the encounter, Josie approached the inmate, Romello Maxwell, who was lying on the ground, before getting punched by him.
Josie started crying after being struck violently. And this prompted another inmate, who was sweeping the floor, approach Maxwell as a response to the violent encounter.
Sheriff Swanson reveals, “He struck Josie hard enough that created a concussion and scrapped the inside of her pupil.”
“She was sent to the vet emergency, [where] she stayed there for a day and a half. We had to get an MRI, we thought that it may have been a brain bleed and the cost is in the thousands,” the Sheriff added.
After watching the surveillance video of the attack, Prosecutor David Leyton said they charged Maxwell “as harshly as possible under Michigan law.”
Maxwell is charged as a habitual offender, which increases the maximum penalty from four years to eight years.
Furthermore, Maxwell has been revealed to have a history of assault against people, having previously assaulted two deputies in the last year.
“We’re going to hold people accountable. If they’re going to do that to these animals, they’re going to do it to people,” Sheriff Swanson said as he held Josie.
Leyton also said, “I don’t think the laws in Michigan are strong enough to protect our furry friends, and I think that if the legislature is listening and watching, maybe you’ll want to take a bill in that increases the penalties for people who would harm our friends, our dogs and our cats.”
Sheriff Swanson also reveals during the news conference that Josie is now doing well and is back on the job.
However, after the revelation that the dog is back to doing her job, people online were worried for Josie’s life and how dangerous it is for her breed, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, to be doing this job around inmates.
One user wrote, “Cavalier’s are too fragile to be put in potential harm. Therapy dog yes for nursing homes, pediatric units, helping yes but not inmates that had history of abuse.”
“Cavaliers are such small dogs. I just don’t understand how anyone thought it would be smart to expose a small animal to inmates who are known to be willfully and carelessly violent,” another wrote.
“I understand that therapy dogs can be beneficial, but in this scenario, at least use a larger breed that has a better chance at being able to defend itself and in the future, don’t leave them alone with these inmates to fend for themselves,” the user continued, before proceeding to call the incident a “careless mistake that could have been avoided”.
An animal shelter is sparking outrage online and across the country after putting down a healthy Golden Retriever shortly after it was brought in.
Criticisms and questions are pouring after Linda McNatt Animal Care & Adoption Center euthanized Gunner, a 13-year-old Golden Retriever who went missing on Tuesday, September 03.
John Gilcrease, Gunner’s owner, said in an almost 10-minute TikTok video telling the story, that when it was time to feed the dog on Tuesday night, the family couldn’t find him at the family’s 8-acre property.
“At that point, I’m starting to freak out so I jump in my car and I drive around for nearly 5 hours, up until nearly 1 o’clock in the morning,” Gilcrease tells CNN.
Gilcrease said that he drove around for hours looking for Gunner, but his efforts were futile. However, the next day, a lady, named Deborah, reached out to him telling him that the pooch was at an animal shelter.
The information brought relief to Gilcrease and his family. He said, “I thought ‘he’s safe, they know we’re coming. He’s there, and everything should be good.’”
Gilcrease noted that when they went to pick Gunner up on Thursday, it was still within an animal shelter’s 72-hour hold on strays.
When he got there, the shelter told them that they found Gunner 12.2 miles away from home. However, Gilcrease noted that with Gunner’s age and his legs, there was no way he could’ve walked that far.
He added, “I know there was a fault in the story. I just couldn’t figure out what or where it was.”
The staff then took Gilcrease to the back of the shelter to look for Gunner. However, Gunner was nowhere to be found in any of the kennels.
Talking to CNN, Gilcrease said, “Like, ‘where’s my dog,’ and she took so long to answer that my rebuttal back to that was, ‘Did you kill my dog?’” said Gilcrease. “And she said, ‘Yes.’”
In a statement, the shelter’s director admitted to putting down Gunner. They explained that Gunner “was geriatric, had severe mobility impairment, and no control over his bladder and bowels.”
“‘Your dog was old. He had arthritis. He can barely stand up. He pooped and peed himself.’ I said, ‘Because he’s scared,’” Gilcrease said.
Gilcrease said that the animal shelter returned Gunner in a plastic bag with no apology at all.
“My children are damaged. I’m damaged. I can’t stop crying. My wife can’t stop crying,” said Gilcrease.
In a statement issued by the City of Denton, they explained, “Gunner was unable to walk without assistance and had no control over his bowels or bladder. After a full veterinary evaluation, it was clear that he was in immense discomfort.”
“Our staff attempted to contact the individual listed on Gunner’s microchip, but the email addresses bounced back, and the phone numbers were disconnected,” they continued.
However, Gilcrease disputes the shelter’s claim that Gunner’s microchip information were outdated. He also reveals that he filed animal cruelty charges filed against the shelter’s staff for putting down their family’s dog.
The City of Denton also talked about their 72-hour stray hold period and how that was not applied to Gunner.
“While the hold period typically applies, there are exceptions, such as when an animal is suffering or has a poor quality of life, which allow staff to forgo the 72-hour requirement,” the City of Denton wrote. “Given Gunner’s degenerative condition and severe suffering, our staff acted within policy to humanely euthanize him.”
However, Gilcrease said, “The animal facilities and shelters should be a safe place for dogs, for lost and scared dogs to go to, so owners could find them in a 72-hour timeframe.
“And that’s a city ordinance. I have 72 hours, and within the first 24 hours, they killed my dog,” Gilcrease added.
New information released by Denton Record-Chronicle revealed that Gunner was found 2 miles away from home, and not 12 miles. Furthermore, the shelter staff didn’t consult with a veterinarian over whether to euthanize Gunner.
The animal shelter’s decision has sparked outrage. The shelter’s Facebook page posts are now filled with comments seeking justice for Gunner.
A Facebook user wrote, “saying goodbye to your pet is especially hard when shelter employees decide it’s time for them to die simply because they are old. Gunner had a loving family at home waiting for him!! SHAME ON YOU!”
While another wrote, “Gunner had a home. Guess arthritis is a death sentence? Justice for Gunner.”
Currently, there is a petition on Charge.org titled “Demand an Investigation into the Unfair Euthanisation Practices at Linda McNatt Animal Care & Adoption Center” that has now over 40,000 signatures.
