Reward offered in dog cruelty case - Battle Creek Enquirer
A search continues for the person who left a small dog to die on railroad tracks last spring.
A $300 reward is being offered through the Silent Observer program for information leading to the arrest of whoever placed a dog carrier on tracks near Dickman Road and 20th Street in Springfield with the small terrier-mix female dog inside.
The dog, dirty and diseased, was found April 8 by a passing motorist and taken to a veterinarian. Ut was then taken to the Calhoun County Animal Center at 165 S. Union St. where employees named the dog Yoda because of her resemblance to the character in the "Star Wars" movie.
She was treated at the shelter for a skin disease, inflamed eyes and injuries from 1½-inch toenails which had curled into her feet.
"This dog was abused to be put on the railroad tracks," Sindy Buford, director of the center, said at the time. "There had to be another way to deal with it than to put it on the tracks. They tried to kill the dog."
Recently an anonymous donor offered the reward for information about the people who may have left the dog on the tracks, said Alicia Davis, the Silent Observer Liaison for the Battle Creek Area Chamber of Commerce.
Anyone with information is asked to call Silent Observer at 269-964-3888. Information is anonymous.
The discovery of the dog drew attention last spring and people continue to follow her progress on the shelter's Facebook page.
"I think it was because she was so small and sad looking," Buford said. "She touched a lot of hearts. Such cruelty to an animal, it pulled a lot of heart strings."
Yoda was adopted by Cindy Green who was living in East Leroy at the time but now lives in Tennessee.
She said Monday the dog is improving.
"She is doing really well," she said. "She is getting some hair and she walks well. She couldn't even walk before because of her injured feet."
"She has got a real good personality now," Green said. "She is real spunky so I can see how she is a survivor."
Green is pleased about interest in the case and the reward for the people who left the dog on the tracks.
"I think anyone who would do this to any kind of animal should be prosecuted," she said. "I think it's great."
And while Yoda attracted attention and now the reward, Buford said the neglect is not an isolated case.
"I am hoping they will find the people," Buford said. "It is not an isolated case. I am not sure the numbers are increasing, however the public is becoming more aware of it because of cases like Yoda.
"And animal agencies are bringing it more before the public eye," she said. "We are becoming a bit more vocal. Animals are not a disposable commodity and they should not be treated that way."
Trace Christenson can be reached at 966-0685 or tchrist@battlecreekenquirer.com.
13 Sep, 2011--
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