Abandoned Dogs Finally Rescued From Elements
When Tracy Landis was told two dogs had been dumped off in a wooded area near Ridinger Lake to fend for themselves, she was sickened. Her despair only intensified in the days that would follow.
As last week’s temperatures were dipping into the single digits and wind chills bottomed out at -14 degrees, Landis felt helpless. She was worried the dogs, seen only sporadically by passersby, would not survive.
“I was out there one day looking for them and someone asked if I was there to get the puppies,” Landis recounted. “My heart sank. ‘There’s puppies, too’?”
Landis operates the nonprofit SCARS Pitbull Rescue in Kosciusko County and, regardless of the breed, she is an avid dog lover and knew she could not rest until she had rescued the dogs.
During one of her several trips out to the area, she was told by another nearby resident that the two dogs had actually been seen in the woods along East Adams Road and R4A Lane north of Pierceton for at least four months. It was confirmation for Landis that the animals had been discarded and basically left for dead. But it was also settling to know the “puppies” she was told about were actually the two dogs she was seeking.
Landis believes the only thing that sustained the dogs for this long was the generosity of a handful of people who saw the dogs and fed them food scraps. One man was said to take a bag of dog food out every once in a while; others driving by would offer them leftovers.
Landis named the male boxer mix dog Vader because he always evaded anyone who tried to get close. There was talk that a second, smaller female dog was with him, but she was even more elusive. “I saw her for the first time (Saturday),” Landis explained. “Until then I wasn’t certain there was a second dog.”
After several days of battling the bitter cold then pouring rains and even hail to rescue the dogs to no avail, on Friday Landis finally set an Igloo dog house in the woods for the dogs and left cans of dog food. When she returned Saturday, she was excited to see both dogs come out of the dog house.
Though timid, the dogs eventually came closer and closer to Landis who brought food and treats to them. She calmly talked to and encouraged the dogs until she was finally able to slip a leash around Vader. “I just started walking him back to my truck and she followed,” said Landis, speaking of the small female pitbull she has now named Journey.
Landis immediately called Dr. Carla Carlton of Lake City Animal Clinic who met her at the office and gave the dogs their initial medical check. Vader had some bite wounds on his left ear and on his neck and both dogs were extremely malnourished. “But other than that,” said Landis, “they are in pretty good shape for being on their own for the last four months.”
The dogs are estimated to now be about a year old.
The cost of the dog’s medical care and surgeries are more than Landis can afford right now, so she is welcoming donations of any amount to care for the animals. Donations can be made to Lake City Animal Clinic in care of SCARS Pitbull Rescue, or via paypal to [email protected].
Donations will go toward spaying/neutering, veterinary care and the rehab the dogs will require. Landis added, “I’ll need extra supplies that I hadn’t planned on. I thought there was only one dog! But if someone wants to donate XL crates, toys, food, blankets, etc. for them, that would help too.”
The ultimate goal is to get the dogs adopted to happy, safe homes. “They are so bonded I’ll need to work with them on that, too, so it’ll probably be a few months at least before they can be adopted,” Landis said.
Also, if anyone has information on who may have dumped the dogs, it is a crime in Indiana. Abandonment or neglect of an animal is a class A misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail and a fine of up to $5,000.
Landis said anyone with that information may contact her at [email protected] or call the police.