Thin dog found

The Lincoln County Humane Society is nursing an emaciated dog back to health and looking for its owner. The chihuahua mix was found wandering the streets of Port Robinson Tuesday afternoon. He weighs less than a third of what he should.

This dog is so hungry he will wolf down an entire bowl of food in seconds.

Jennette Riches is an animal care technican: “He will devour anything that’s put in front of him at this point.”

But because he’s dangerously underweight, his intake has to be carefully rationed.

Kevin Strooband is the Exec. Director of the Lincoln County Humane Society: “Well, he’s three pounds right now and we assume he should be 9 to 12.”

So you can actually count every single rib on him and when you look at his backside, his waist is almost the same size as my wrist.

A man found him wandering down Biggar Road in Port Robinson. He called the Lincoln County Humane Society when he noticed how thin the dog was.

Kevin said: “It’s really difficult to say if he was running loose or if he wasn’t fed. There’s a whole bunch of factors.”

A visit to the vet has ruled out most underlying medical conditions.  So the humane society has launched an investigation to find out how he became so malnourished.  Because of his coat condition they believe he has or at least had an owner.

Kevin said: “That’s what our goal is right now is to find that owner and have a conversation with them.”  For now, nursing him back to health is first priority.

The sight of the dog is striking — but seeing this dog in person — it’s jarring to feel just how thin he is.

The humane society is asking anyone in the Port Robinson area who has information or recognizes him to call 905-682-0767 ext. 1

Because the investigation is still so fresh it’s unclear what will happen to him. If an owner is identified, there’s a possibility the dog could be returned. If it’s found they weren’t neglectful. If no owner is found or the owner is deemed unfit, he’ll go up for adoption.