Dying Dog: 'Neglect to a Whole New Level'

About four times a month, someone will abandon their animals at the Center For Animal Health and Welfare in Williams Township.

It might be a box of kittens, or a dog tied to their porch. But they all tend to be younger animals, said Ian Shulman, a trainer at the center.

"They're typically not dogs that people have had their whole lives," he said.

But that description fits Bracha— that wound up at the shelter earlier this week.

Shulman has seen mistreated dogs before, but "nothing of this magnitude," he said Friday at the shelter.

"This was neglect to a whole new level," Shulman said.

Last Sunday, workers at the PetCo at the 25th Street shopping center in Easton found Bracha in a box outside the store, and contacted the CAHW.

"He couldn't stand. He couldn't do anything," Shulman said. "He sat there wrapped up in a towel."

Bracha—the name the folks at the shelter gave him—was severely underweight, suffering from congestive heart failture and cataracts. The vet told Shulman to keep him comfortable.

And that's what happened. Bracha was bathed, fed and cared for for the rest of the day. Everyone took turns holding him, keeping him warm.

He died that night at Shulman's home. Shulman has seen dogs die before. It didn't make this any easier.

He wonders about Bracha's breed. The dog was a Chinese crested, not exactly a common household pet.

"This is a dog that takes a lot of care to have in the first place," he said. "It's not a dog you can go to a pet store and just buy."

What makes it even more frustrating is that no one knows where Bracha came from. The shelter is hoping someone with information about his owner will contact its humane police officer—610-252-7722 ext. 3—so they can begin an investigation.

While I waited to speak with Shulman Friday afternoon, I spotted a small, twitchy dog behind the counter at the shelter. Her name is Molly. She's essentially the office mascot.

The 10-year-old dog survived horrendous abuse before she wound up at the shelter. She is battered and scrappy, spoiled, loved, and lucky.

We're ending with her for perspective. The animal stories that run here seem like an endless parade of feral cats and forgotten dogs.

So it's good to think of Molly, a dog that had a happy ending, even as we revisit the story of Bracha, a dog that was not lucky, and loved only briefly.