saw this online and it brought tears to my eyes, so i thought i'd share it and the sadness
Dear Owner of This Lost Dog,
Your dog was found yesterday. He'll be receiving a bath today, as he smells incredibly bad. His coat is dull, he's a bit on the thin side, he's got a cough, and he flinches quite a bit when hands are raised around him.
But he rode incredibly well in the truck! After we found him, we took him to the vet....he tested positive for heartworms. He's still intact, which could explain why he was found running loose. (We're getting ready to "fix" that little problem though), and he's got kennel cough. He probably picked that up at the dog pound.
Yes, that is where we found your beloved pet. He had a collar on, but no tags. (A collar isn't much good when a rabies tag and I.D tags aren't on it.)
It wouldn't have been hard to find him either...had you just looked.
I don't know whether to thank you, or send you a bill. ($200.00 spent on him yesterday, and we still have about $500.00 more to go. It isn't an easy amount to swallow on a dog you've had for a few hours! BUT, you didn't force us to adopt the dog you neglected either).
I guess I should thank you for such a sweet dog, that we never would have found had you not been so careless with him.
He will endure a treatment that will require him to stay calm and quiet for a number of weeks-unless we can find an alternative, (and try to get a dog with this energy to stay calm and quiet for that long). There are also risks involved as well. I don't know that you really care though.
Of course, the financial aspect of it all, will be a bit rough, as it would be for anyone. But you know what? Had your dog been well maintained, this wouldn't be necessary. But, I would also venture to guess that he wouldn't be in the pound either had you properly maintained him.
So, I just thought I'd let you know that he is o.k. now. He's no longer on a cold concrete floor shivering in the night from fear and/or chills. His coughing will be getting better too with the medicine he's taking. He'll no longer be waiting for you to find him...he's home now.
He's no longer at risk of being put to death, just because his owner wasn't responsible enough. Although, the many other dogs that we saw yesterday, are probably wishing for the same outcome, but sadly, that will never happen for them.
Anyway, sorry this was so long. Just wanted to let you know your dog was found.
Sincerely,
A dog lover
