A dog that somehow got on a truck bound for Georgia from South Carolina is now looking for a new home, with the help of the Gwinnett County Police Department.
The dog, named “Carolina” by police here, turned up July 19 when a worker at a Duluth business opened the door of a trailer and a dog ran out and into the warehouse, police said.
The animal, a shepherd mix believed to be three to four years old, apparently had stowed away in the trailer two days earlier when it stopped to make a pick-up in Denmark, S.C. The truck’s driver told police there was no other way the dog could have gotten into his vehicle.
The trailer was not air conditioned, and the temperature inside was believed to have gotten well over 100 degrees. Somehow, the canine survived her ordeal – though she was barely able to walk or stand and was severely dehydrated and hungry, police said.
Carolina had no collar, and a scan for a microchip was negative. Gwinnett officers checked with South Carolina authorities and could find no report of a missing dog matching the stowaway’s description.
So, Carolina is now at a local animal hospital in stable and improving condition, being treated for heartworm. Veterinary staff say she is very good natured, “although she has few social skills,” police said in a news release.
In a phone interview, Lt. Mary Lou Respess, manager of the Gwinnett County Animal Shelter, said, “She’s apparently not necessarily feral, but for whoever had her before, she was probably an outside dog” – meaning the animal lived outdoors, may have come inside occasionally and knew how to behave around people.
The dog showed no signs of ill treatment, with no scars or other marks, though “she’s very, very thin. She could have gotten away from somewhere and was living on her own,” Respess said.
Carolina has been warming up to people, quickly learned how to sit, stay and shake hands, and is now being housetrained, Respess said.
Carolina could be ready to go home with someone in about a month. Police ask anyone interested in adopting her to call the Gwinnett County Animal Shelter at 770-339-3200. A listing of other animals available for adoption are available at this website.
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