Dog Dumped and Left Tied to Shelter’s ‘Do Not Abandon’ Sign Overnight

An animal shelter in Michigan has found itself facing a heartbreaking yet all too common situation when a dog was abandoned outside of its facility overnight.

To make matters worse, the dog was left tied up next to a sign that read “do not abandon an animal here.”

Harbor Humane Society, in West Olive, Michigan, took to Facebook to express its disappointment, sharing a picture of the pup with a plea for information.

“We know there is a lot of reasons people can’t keep their pets. But please, do not tie your pet overnight at a shelter,” the post read. Addressing the individual responsible for abandoning the animal, the shelter emphasized its desire to help the dog and learn her story and history. “This pup deserves to have her story and history known. We do not want to shame or get you in trouble—we just want to help this poor pup.”

According to surveillance footage, the dog was abandoned on Monday, April 8, at approximately 9:05 p.m. A female chihuahua mix, the shelter staff estimate she is around 3-4 years old.

Unfortunately, situations like this are not uncommon. “At least a dozen times a year, we encounter similar situations,” Harbor Humane Society Executive Director Jen Self-Aulgur told Newsweek. “Nationwide, this can be a daily occurrence at some shelters.”

The shelter hopes that the Facebook post might help it gather more information about the dog, and hopefully learn more about her background.

“When someone abandons an animal without any information, we are left to guess,” Self-Aulgur said. “We also didn’t get the chance to see if there was anything that we could do to help the animal stay in her home.”

As for the dog’s future, she will undergo a legal stray hold period while the shelter attempts to locate her owner.

If nobody comes forward, she will eventually be available for adoption and will hopefully be able to find a new happy home.

“She seems friendly. But we don’t know her story, her name, her likes, her favorite treats or toys,” Self-Aulgur said.

“This is all information we try to get on animals when they are surrendered to the shelter,” she explained. “We also didn’t get the chance to see if there was anything that we could do to help the animal stay in her home. We have a robust intake diversion program to prevent animals from having to come to shelters and be left.”