A puppy is now safe after being left to fend for herself on a road in New Haven. East Haven Animal Control picked up the dog and brought her to their shelter.
The heartbreaking scene is caught on surveillance video, obtained by the East Haven Animal Shelter. In the video, a woman stops her car near a warehouse in New Haven just before 8 a.m. Saturday. She lets a dog off a leash then drives off, as the small pup chases after her.
“You hear about it, but until you see it, it's kind of difficult to be brought into the reality of it,” Monica Vece, East Haven Animal Control officer, said.
That puppy is now being called Josie, and she is safe at the shelter. Vece picked Josie up after getting a call from a family in East Haven, who reported finding the 6- to 9-month-old puppy.
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“There is a right way and a wrong way to go about re-homing your animal,” Vece said. “That video kind of shows the wrong way.”
Abandoning an animal is illegal under Connecticut’s animal cruelty laws.
Vece said she sees pets roaming, just like Josie, every week, and often no one comes to reclaim them.
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“It happens more frequently than you'd think. I mean, we can go twice a week,” Vece said. “You kind of have to assume that it's the kind of same situation as our little girl Josie, it's just we didn't see it happen.”
Vece said police will handle the criminal investigation in Josie’s case, but on Monday, East Haven Animal Control made contact with the woman in the video, who then surrendered the puppy.
The next step for Josie is finding a forever home. She is currently up for adoption.
“I think she’d do great in a family with kids, because she's so playful,” Vece said. “She plays fetch. She's really gentle. She's a good dog. So we're definitely going to find her a good home. I know that wherever she goes next, she's definitely going to be able to live out her life.”
Vece encourages anyone who feels they need to re-home a dog to use the appropriate channels.
“Always reach out to your shelter in your town,” she said.
Even if the shelter is at capacity, Vece said they will still help find a safe solution.
“We had someone call and surrender two of their dogs today, because it's just, they weren't able to care for them,” Vece said. “Always reach out. Don't feel like you can't call, because even if we're not able to help you, we're going to give you information and resources to help.”
NBC Connecticut has reached out to both East Haven and New Haven police. Per New Haven police, New Haven Animal Control is aware of the incident, and is working with the East Haven Animal Shelter to investigate.
