Here’s a quick way to get to the special hell — chaining a dog to the railroad tracks. Which some no-account coward did last week in West Dallas. The release from my friends at Operation Kindness follows the jump. Please help if you have any info. It’s worth $25K to you, and the last thing we need is a local Michael Vick getting away with it.
Edit: Whoops. Wishful thinking on my part. The reward is $2,500, not $25K.
A $2,500 reward is being offered in the animal cruelty case involving a dog chained and left to die on railroad tracks in Dallas Tuesday, July 24. The gentle black Labrador retriever-Chow mix escaped death with minutes to spare, thanks to the quick actions and caring concern of train workers.
Early Tuesday morning, the conductor of a Union Pacific train passing through far West Dallas near I-30 and Loop 12 noticed a dog chained to an adjacent railroad track. The alert trainman notified his dispatcher, and Union Pacific’s Bob Koci responded.
Koci, an animal lover who carries dog food in his truck to feed strays he encounters along his route, found a terrified dog with one end of a heavy chain wrapped around his neck. The other end of the chain was wrapped around the track and secured by thick wire. Union Pacific stopped two trains scheduled to run along that track in the next 15-30 minutes while Koci used a sledgehammer to break the wire and free the dog. After giving him water and food, Koci put the dog in his truck and drove him to Operation Kindness in Carrollton.
The dog, named Spike by Operation Kindness, is about 10 pounds underweight, reported Jonnie England, executive director of the no-kill animal shelter. “His coat is dull and dirty, and he has old scars along both rear feet and on the back of his neck–probably from a too-tight collar or chain allowed to become embedded. Otherwise, he’s in fairly good shape, and his demeanor is calm and friendly.”
Koci is currently caring for Spike in his Benbrook home until the dog gains more weight. He’s expected to be available for adoption from Operation Kindness in early August.
Operation Kindness has offered rewards in other animal-abuse cases, including that of the burned dog Mercy in April 2006. DeShawn Brown is charged with a third-degree felony for animal abuse in that case and is awaiting a Sept. 24 trial date. Operation Kindness is currently offering a reward in another animal cruelty case involving a dog named Angel, who had wire wrapped around her muzzle for more than a month. Dallas Animal Services is still investigating that case.
Anyone with information regarding the dog chained to the railroad tracks should contact Dallas Animal Services at 214-671-0105.
