Citizen Staff Writer
By IRENE HSIAO
ihsiao@tucsoncitizen.com
Two Humane Society members discovered a dead dog in a cardboard box yesterday outside the shelter. It’s not known if freezing temperatures were a factor in the dog’s demise, but there were no obvious signs of illness or injury.
The 3-year-old Welsh corgi was “very cold to the touch,” said Marsh Myers, a spokesman for the Animal Cruelty Task Force of Southern Arizona. A member with animal CPR training tried to resuscitate the dog at the Humane Society of Southern Arizona, 3450 N. Kelvin Blvd., near North Country Club and East Fort Lowell roads.
The Humane Society filed a report with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department, he said.
“We don’t know how long the dog had actually been in our parking lot. It was obviously put there some time when the shelter was closed,” Myers said. “We don’t know how much the freezing affected the animal’s condition.”
A necropsy will be conducted at the University of Arizona Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, he said.
The female dog appeared to have been healthy and well-fed, Myers said. Its coat was clean, its teeth were in good shape and there were no signs of bleeding, injury or intestinal illness, he said.
“When we examined her she didn’t show any signs of what would be typical for a dog left dead on arrival at a shelter,” Myers said.
Animals get left out in the cold because some believe their fur keeps them from freezing, he said. But pets can easily succumb to the elements.
Anyone with information about the dog is asked to call 88-CRIME, the Humane Society, 321-3704 ext. 141, or the Animal Cruelty Task Force of Southern Arizona at 547-0260.